Burned
by Thessian Shadow
Summary: Takes place during "Underground - The Lair" Alex figures himself out, after narrowly escaping Judge Holloway. Odd pairing Ahead: Alex/Margaret. How will he explain this? What will Elle think? How does his stay in a psych ward fit into this? Find out here!
1. Drilled Into My Head

Burning  
Chapter 1: Drilled in My Head

_**Disclaimer: **_Don't own anything. All belongs to Konami

_**A/N: **_Krackfic Ahead. I don't know where I came up with this pairing. Maybe it was because I played the game for 10 hrs straight. I dunno. Anyway, pairing: Alex Shepherd/Judge Holloway

* * *

Curtis' face loomed over him as Alex was being dragged away from the elevator. The light above him was bright, nearly blinding him as he passed under it. Another passed over him, and the blinding effect happened again. This convinced him that he had a slight concussion, from where Curtis blitzed him earlier. Finally, he stopped moving, and was placed in a bad sitting position. The chair he had been shoved into was rough against his skin., which he noticed was exposed, due to a large ripped place in his shirt..

His vision was blurred slightly, when his head was pressed against the metal cuff in the back of the chair, and eventually the room cleared, revealing Judge Holloway sitting in a chair, almost asleep. Curtis' voice startled her.

"Do whatever you want with him. What should I do about the girl?"

She indicated two weapons in the room. There was a gas=powered saw and a cordless drill. He chose the saw, which Alex vaguely remembered seeing in the sea of junk at his repair shop. Curtis stomped toward the door, muttering something to himself, before he left, letting the door slam with a bang. Judge Holloway finally focused her attention on the man slumped over in the chair.

"Judge Holloway… What the-"

"You should probably call me Margaret, seeing as you're so grown up…" Her voice held a note that he couldn't recognize. It was sending mixed signals, but the tone was not new to him.

_The hotel… The woman behind the door with no knob. She had this same tone to her voice. I never saw who she was, but… there was something familiar to it…. _His wrists were bound, as well as his ankles, but he noticed that they weren't too tight to escape from. "Why are you here? Is Elle here too? What about Joshua?"

She shook her head, making him a little uncomfortable. "Joshua is not here." She sat up straighter, and gave him a pensive look. "Elle is, though. Curtis was headed her way."

"WHAT? That's what he was talking about? What the hell is wrong with you? You know what he's going to do, and you're just going to let him?" This angered her, and she stood, coming to stand right in fromt of him.

"I'd rather her die at my hand, than to those pigs from the order." She began pacing the room in front of him, and began speaking again.

"Years ago, the founders left the order and Silent Hill so that they could start a new life. However, they fear our God. This caused them to form a pact. We would be asked to sacrifice our children once every fifty years. This way, we could remain safe, rather than reviving the order."

"What the hell? How could a God demand this of people?" His question was ignored for the moment. She rounded on him then. "All of us were supposed to sacrifice a child, Bartlett, Fitch, your father, and myself. Three people succeeded, but one didn't. Mayor Bartlett buried his son Joseph alive, Doctor Fitch dismembered his daughter Scarlet, and I watched the life drain from Nora's eyes, as I strangled her. Your father failed to fulfill his duty. You Alex, YOU were supposed to drown! This makes all our sacrifices worthless! Ours were in vain, and the wrong child was killed, FALLING TO THE BOTTOM OF Toluca Lake. Your brother Joshua was killed, causing you to lose your mind! You haven't been gone, fighting in the war as a soldier! You were locked up in a nuthouse, because of what you did to your brother! Don't tell me your father didn't telly you that!"

Angry tears had begun to fall at the mention of Nora, and now Judge Holloway turned away from him. She didn't see the look of horror on his face that was almost like a child's when they realized they had made a mistake.

"How… When-" Alex felt almost powerless, bound to the chair, and his speech was reflecting it. His voice was cracking, and his breath was coming in quick bursts. "When d-did this…" His brain seemed to be trying to recreate memories of what had happened to him in the war, and there was nothing, but he did remember being on Toluca Lake, with Josh, In the dead of night. The ring had glittered before his eyes, before Josh fell over the side of the canoe, sinking lifelessly into the water. Alex was subconsciously struggling against his bonds, causing his captor to turn and watch him. His skin was becoming more and more torn, as he struggled against the rusty cuffs of the chair, and it seemed he didn't even realize it.

"Don't!" His shout caused her to flinch, as his eyes snapped open. The blood had started to leak from his wrists, from where he had scraped them raw. An invisible force caused Margaret to grip his wrists in her cold hands, causing him to jerk away. Whether it was concern or something else, she didn't know, but his eyes weren't even focused on her. They were spinning around the room, searching for a way out. They came to a rest on the cordless drill, sitting on the shelf, and reality set in. "You are supposed to k-kill me…"

Curtis stood over Elle, whispering taunting information into her ear about her mother, Alex, and Wheeler. His circular saw was hissing and sputtering in her ear, causing her to jump when he decided to rev it up. The blade came within an inch of her chest, and he would pull back.

"Why the hell are you-" The saw made a sickening wail as it was powered up again. Curtis moved within half an inch of her face.

"Your mother sent me. She's in there dealing with your little friend now. Within the hour, there'll be nothing left of you both. That ought to set the record straight." He started chewing on a cigarette, before continuing. "See, there's a certain order to things, that's how they work. When things stop workin', then I'm called in to fix 'em. This is one of those times. Yer friend in there, see there's no room or need for him. That puts things out of order. That's why we were brought here. See, your mother and I are people who are able to fix this mess."

"You're crazy! Mom wouldn't!"

"Who the hell do you think made sure you were brought here? You think the order just brought you here on their own so you could see this dump? No. They had a plan for your mother and me. It's time we finished it."

"Why would mom ever do something so stupid. This is sick shit!" He neared her with the saw again, but it sputtered and died on him.

"Fuck!" He tightened the bonds on Elle's wrists and ankles, and left the room, intending to head back and replenish his gas supply. "Should've just sliced her up and gotten done with it. Hopefully, Holloway will have the punk dealt with by the time I get back."

"That's right. I'm supposed to kill you. I fully intend to finish what you rather couldn't." She reached out, getting the drill from the shelf, and turning it on. His face changed from blank to horrified as the drill bit came closer to his leg. As it penetrated his thigh muscle, he screamed, moving his wrists quickly, trying to get free. Blood poured from the wound, but he couldn't concentrate on that. He was trying to read the expression on Judge Holloway's face, when Curtis re-entered the room. He found the rusty gas can, refilled the saw, and left, flashing a sadistic smile back at Alex. The rusty cuff finally budged, allowing for one of his hands to get free. He pushed her away, breaking her concentration, and he struggled to get the other hand free. By the time he did, she had aimed the drill at the skin between his eyes.

His reflees were fast enough to grip her wrists. This allowed for Alex to push the drill away from him, but as he did, the realization of where it would go hit him. Less than an inch from her jaw, he gripped her wrists hard and twisted them, causing her to drop the drill before it lodged itself into her head. The drill fell to the floor, shattering the back of it, and the bit stopped moving. Apparently, she hadn't seen where the drill had been aimed, and looked at him confused.

"I couldn't…" Alex looked at her wrists, which were turned at an odd angle. Gently, he twisted them so that the joint popped back into place. "No matter what, I couldn't bring myself to harm you. Not just for Elle's sake, but for mine as well. You Elle, and Nora were real family to me." He slowly sat up straighter, not letting her go. "Don't let Elle go. I saw the look on your face in the prison, when you saw Nora's locket. You miss her terribly, and it would positively destroy you to lose your other daughter. Don't let these order bastards bully you into losing all that makes life worth living."

They heard footsteps, and soon, two men in mining suits came into the room. Both stood on either side of the chair, one glaring at Margaret, the other looking around the room. "You were supposed to finish him." The other order soldier looked at a loose wire jutting from the wall, seeing It sparking, he picked it up.

"I know a way to make sure this ends here." He moved toward the chair, placing the wire down at the base of one of the legs, causing the electric current to travel through the metal. Alex's body started jerking, and the two order soldiers sniggered, leaving. Once they were gone, Alex fixed his eyes on the woman before him. "D-d-d-do somet-thing!"

Within a few seconds, she swiftly kicked the live wire away from the chair, causing Alex's body to stop shaking. He felt an odd sensation running up his arm, and saw that Margaret was checking his skin for electrical burns.

"What possessed you to kill your daughter and try to kill the other one?"

His question was so blunt, it took her by Holloway released his ankles from their binding cuffs, noting that they were soaked with blood, just as his wrists were. "You don't get it, do you? Didn't you see how your parets died? Do you think I want that to happen with Elle? As for Nora, it was to protect my family from this! Since Adam failed in his duty, all of us are in for a horrible death at the hands of the order and God!"

"Not if you take your own life into your you honestly believe that a God would be so wrathful as to demand that one of his children sacrifice one of their own? Do you really think that he would ask that of one of you, when Abraham didn't even have to sacrifice his son? Really, do you?"

"Does it matter now!" Her voice was angry and desperate. "We are screwed, for lack of a better term, and you're quizzing me on my religious beliefs?"

"Screwed is such an ironic term, seeing as you tried to force a drill through my head, and yes. I am questioning you. These beliefs that the order and the founders implanted into your head are a load of shit!"

"Really, seeing as Shepherd's Glen's streets are wasting away to nothing, and people are missing every day? Is that really a load of it?"

Her anger had increased, and he could see tears brimming in her eyes. This was something he had never imagined. When he was a kid, Margaret Holloway was one woman who could take whatever life threw at her and never show any emotion. Even when he first arrived back in Shepherd's glen, her face had remained an emotionless mask. The only time he had seen a remnant of an emotion, was when she had said he looked well. Even then, it was a ghost of a smile.

_I remember only one time when I saw just how frayed her nerves were. I was ten, and Elle and I were walking around, venting about our parents. Dad had gone off on me for trying to play army men with Josh. He said that there was no pretend to war, and that army men were for strategy only. Josh got off, and sort of rubbed it in my face. Elle said something about how Nora was being a handful, what with nightmares and shit. Elle said Nora was screaming about how her mom was trying to kill her by choking her to death. We went into the Rose Heights Cemetery. While we were exploring the graves, we noticed someone who was originally from Silent Hill. They were buried around the same time Edwin Holloway was buried. We headed home, when two crazy guys jumped us, saying that we shouldn't be anywhere near the founders' graves. They said there was too much we didn't need to know. As we were trying to get away from them, Elle fell, twisting her ankle and fracturing her elbow. One of the guys swung some odd pipe thing at me, and hit me in the chest. Needless to say, when we didn't show up, Dad and Judge Holloway joined the police force and searched around. Luckily, she found us, otherwise, Dad would have my head._

"_Alex, Elle, I demand an explanation!" Her voice was weird. I'd never heard her sound so cold, but I couldn't speak, due to trying to catch my breath, and Elle couldn't face her mother. She waved it off, leading us out of the cemetery, and to Dr. Fitch's office. He checked out my ribs and reset Elle's ankle, and left us to Judge Holloway._

"_Now, explain yourselves, both of you."_

"_Mom, we-"_

"_It's my fault, Judge Holloway…" I had interrupted Elle, and Judge Holloway's anger was directed toward me._

"_Of all places, why the graveyard? There are people there who could have killed you both! Alex, you know what your father will-" Before she could finish her angry rant,I had already sat down on the examining bench, looking down at the floor, tears threatening to fall._

"_I-I never meant for any-thing to happen… I was t-talking to Elle about Dad, and she was talking about Nora. We were headed back, when these t-two crazy idiots jumped us. They were saying we sh-shouldn't be near the founders' garden. They said there was too much we didn't need to know… One of them tripped Elle, and I doubled back, and they hit me with a pipe. I didn't want her to get hurt… I just had to-"_

_Before I could finish, she had gotten down to my level, wrapping her arms around me, trying to calm me down. "Alex honey, I know it wasn't your intention to get hurt, all I ask is that you be wary of your surroundings. The cemetery is a very dangerous place, especially now." She was taken aback by what I had said. I didn't give a damn about myself. I was solely concerned for Elle. She had me look at her, and I don't know, I don't think I had ever seen that much concern from my own mother._

"_I know how your father is, and I hate it for you. He doesn't seem to be there nearly as much as he should. I guess that's why I like having you spend most of your time at the house with Elle. That way I know you're out of trouble."_

Margaret's voice called him out of the memory. She called his name for about the third time, and he finally focused on her. "Did you hear a word of what I said?"

"I'm sorry, no. What was that?" He rubbed his head, feeling a knot growing on the back of it. She gave him an exasperated look, and leaned against the wall, massaging her neck.

"If you think this is a load of crap, then explain just how we're getting out of here. How do you propose we get out, saving Elle, and escaping these order bastards?" Her voice was still stressed, and she looked extremely tired. "If you've got a plan, I'd love to hear it."

"The only thing I'm concerned with is getting the fuck out of here. Unless you want to be bait for these murdering pigs, I suggest you stick close. I don't want what happened to my parents or Wheeler to happen to you. One thing though, When I freed you from the chair in prison, how'd you wind up in this dump prepared to kill me?"

"Damned if I know… I headed out, then was whacked over the head, and woke up in the room where they brought you. I had the thought that I had to set things straight for the sake of Shepherd's Glen."

"Fuck Shepherd's Glen! It's ruined! If we get out of here, I'm leaving this place!"

"You may not care, but I do! I gave up my kid to keep the place safe! Nora died, thinking I hated her! How do you think that makes me feel, knowing that you don't give a damn about that!"

"I never said I didn't! I never said I didn't care about you or Nora! Damnit, you were more of a parent than I ever had! How can I just say forget you!" He crossed the room, resting both hands on her shoulders. Her flinch was what worried him. "What is it?"

She shook her head, and turned away from him. The tears were still there, and they were falling openly. Alex spun her around to face him again, only to feel her grip him tightly. Her arms had wrapped themselves around his neck, while her face was buried in the alcove of his neck and shoulder. His arms slowly and tentatively snaked around her slender waist. Her entire body began to shake with silent sobs.

_Something I said? What in the world did I do to have this happen? I'm not the world's most sensitive person, but I guess I'll have to play this out._

He got a strange urge, but didn't dare to act on it. It was odd, because he had always thought of her as a mother figure. His eyes moved to observe her, and it didn't surprise him that he had a hard time believing the woman before him was Elle's mother. She slowly raised her head to look into his face, expecting to see him horrorstruck, but instead, there was an unreadable expression. This stumped her for all of a few seconds, until she noted that Alex's hands were not at her waist anymore. His left was slowly removing a loose strand of hair from her pale face. His right was now at the middle of her back. "Alex…"

"Don't." He pulled away, forcing open the door, and then doubled back to pick up the ceremonial dagger and a first aid kit. "You coming? I don't want you to be alone."

"Yeah…" She followed without a word, and Alex made a personal vow. _I'll do whatever I can to protect her and save Elle. It's the least I can do for her. I know I will never understand my own reasoning, but I feel like I've go to do this…_


	2. Blood Wall

_**Burned  
**__Chapter 2: Blood Wall_

_**A/N: **__Thanks to Wolf for reviewing so quickly! Here's Chapter 2. Hope y'all like the way this crack pairing is going. Hope to see more readers! Anyway, Enjoy!_

_**Disclaimer: **__I OWN NOTHING! Too bad I don't… __

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_

A few steps down the hallway, Alex stopped, leaning against the wall, and very tentatively touched his leg. His flinching would have been comical, had it not been for the situation. Quickly, he removed the first aid kit from the right pants pocket he had shoved it in, and opened it. Gauze were almost bulging from inside the small plastic case, so he pulled them out, along with the disinfectant. Before he used It, he placed his forearm in front of his mouth, screaming into it when he threw the liquid into the bloody hole in his leg.

"God damnit!" His hands were shaking when he stuffed the gauze around gthe wound. While he held them there, Margaret ripped his pant leg, placing the seal around the hole. "Aarrhhh…" For the next few minutes, they walked in silence, him making sure to keep most of his weight on his left leg. They made it to the end of the hallway, where the only option was to turn left, because the door ahead was jammed. "Where to now?"

"Not sure… There's too many possibilities. Seems the only way to go is that way, so hopefully, we'll find Curtis there."

"Let's hope so. I don't want anything to happen to Elle…" Pressing forward, they passed a door, and hearing movement on the other side, Alex doubled back. Voices were heard beyond the door.

"Who knows when she'll be done with him… Anyway, Wonder what Ackers is goin' to do to her daughter."

"Who cares? As long as this ends, I don't care if there's a blood bath to clean up. I want this done, and so does the counsil."

"They were dragging their feet with this whole Shepherd's Glen business. We all knew there'd be some fool who couldn't sacrifice his child, or would fuck things up somehow."

"Just a matter of time.. HEY! You can't be here!"

Alex ducked back away from the door, in time to have it shoved open, and two order soldiers rushed out, one armed with a pipe, the other a rusted rifle. Both came after him, ignoring the woman in the shadows, and Alex had a hard time carving them up with the dagger. The one with the rifle had to go first, seeing as he didn't know if the gun still worked. After a few lunges with the dagger, Alex succeeded in jamming it into the soldier's neck. The one with the pipe came at him full force, swinging left and right, mostly missing. Darting back and forth, Alex moved behind the man, wrapping his arm around his neck, and plunged the dagger into the back of it, causing the man to fall, choking. "Something worth protecting is in here…" He took the pipe off the dead soldier, and shoved the door open. Inside, on a hook on the wall, was a bronze key, with the word "SENIOR" etched roughly into the face. He took it, and exited out the door. "Any ideas now?"

"There was a locked door back the way we came. Maybe that'll lead us to Elle."

"I've got a feeling you know way more than you're telling. Be straight with me here! We're in a rat's nest of Order members, here. I'm sure you don't want to be left to them! If we keep wandering about, Elle's going to die, and we'll be soon after."

"That's all I know about this place! I remember coming here once, and the order made sure I woldn't remember my way around. That's the point of this maze!"

They doubled back, and seeing the door with a keyhole, Alex tried the key, and with a few hard turns, it worked, unlocking the door. Another order soldier came running to greet them, and this time, Margaret left her foot out, causing the man to trip, falling flat on his face. Alex drove the pipe into the back of his skull, and continued down the hallway. Hearing the sound of a saw running, he edged closer to the door at the end, and looking through the window, he saw Curtis, taunting Elle, by moving the blade close, and then pulling it away. Elle was struggling against the leather bonds that held her to the chair, and thankfully, Curtis was having too much fun to see Alex looking through the door.

"I need a way in there. I'm betting this door's locked." He tried it, and sure enough, the latch was stuck. He turned to the metal gate that seemed to be attached to the walls, rather than the ceiling, like the others. "I think I can get over it. Keep an eye at the window."

He pulled himself over the gate, cursing under his breath, when his foot got hung, pulling his right leg. There was something blocking the other door, and after pushing that out of the way, he heard Margaret's voice.

"He heard you! Get in there!"

Alex pried the door open, and was almost taken aback, when he saw Curtis already headed for him with the saw poised. His first reaction was to keep dodging the saw, hoping to get a clean shot at Curtis, but that didn't happen for a few minutes. Eventually, the man's arm's got tired, from swinging the saw, and Alex would choose these moments to attack, swinging the pipe and hitting Curtis in the stomach. Noting that this was hardly accomplishing anything, he made a cheap shot, by hitting Curtis in the groin. Alex then cursed himself for not thinking of this sooner, and proceeded to stab Curtis with the dagger. After kicking the saw out of the way, he took the key from the table, and headed into the other room to free Elle.

"Alex…"

"You OK, Elle?"

"Not really… Can you believe my mother did this…."

"No… Not really-" While he cut the strap binding her legs to the chair, he heard a god-awful scream come from outside the room. "Damnit!" He finished getting her free, and quickly tried to get the first door open. Upon doing so, he looked out, almost vomiting, when he saw what was outside. Judge Holloway's body was lying on the ground, sawed completely in half, and blood was dripping from the wall behind it. Alex saw the man with the pyramid helmet's shadow edging back, and before he could stop himself, he screamed. "COWARD!"

The shadow stopped, turning around, and Alex was not even thinking, when he was trying to keep Elle from seeing her mother. He saw the man move in front of the body, then he stood staring at Alex.

"You pray on the weak and powerless… How can yo justify this!" Alex motioned to the severed body behind the executioner. The man just grunted, moving his great knife around, swiping Alex in the stomach. Everything went black, and the last thing he heard was Elle's scream.


	3. Cascade of Memories Part I

_**Burned  
**__Chapter 3: Cascade of Memories_

**A/N: **This chapter is going to be a little different. Instead of a regular story, it'll be exactly as the title suggests, a bunch of memories. There will be breaks in between the different sequences. This is just to clarify. I've done this before, and confused a lot of people. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

Blackness met him, and Alex wondered just what had happened. First, he was staring at the executioner, then pain, and now nothing. Elle's scream echoed in his head, and it suddenly hit him. Was the scream about him, her mother, or both? _Selfish thought… _Images swam before his eyes, solidifying into memories that he had long forgotten.

* * *

_Running, that was what he was doing. The street was dark, his father was close behind, and Alex was getting tired._

"_I told you to stay away from there! How is it that you live to disobey me?"_

_Adam finally caught up with his son, shaking him until Alex's head was swimming. "I don't want you anywhere near that lake again! Do I make myself clear?"_

"_Y-yes sir…"_

"_I didn't hear you!"_

"_YES SIR!" Alex was taken straight home, and grounded for two weeks, restricted to the house, unless told otherwise._

_After the two weeks, he had gone to talk to Elle about it. She had been wondering what had kept him away from wandering the streets with her. "Where have you been?"_

"_Grounded. My dad flipped out when he saw me at the edge of Toluca Lake, looking out at the town on the other side. He got mad, told me off, and then dragged me home."_

"_Man… What's his deal?" They had stopped outsidethe comics store, and were sitting on a bench across the street. "I mean, he's always on your case."_

"_I know… I feel like I'm not really…" His words were drowned out, as a tired Deputy Wheeler came jogging up._

"_Alex, your mom's lookin' for you. Elle, so is yours." Both of the kids looked up._

"_What's goin' on, Wheeler?" Alex stood up. Wheeler shook his head._

"_I don't know. They want you home now. Your dad sent me to get you, Alex."_

"_Fine. I'll see you later, Elle."_

_Getting home, Alex was surprised to see a small boy shaking in his mother's arms. Josh had been having odd dreams, and now apparently, he had a fever. Adam met him at the door. "Stay here, and help your mother. I've got some work to do. You have to grow up and help out around here."_

"_Dad… I'm only te-"_

"_SHUT IT, AND DO WHAT I SAY!" Alex shrank back, darting into the other room with his mother. She just waved him to the kitchen, and he proceeded to get a cold cloth for his brother. As he walked into the kitchen, he looked back, seeing his father walking out the door, and the memory faded into blackness.

* * *

_

_Town hall appeared, and along with it, Nora Holloway. She was sitting on the steps beside her mother, who was reading over some paperwork. A thirteen year-old Alex approached from the street._

"_Judge Holloway, good morning."_

"_Morning, Alex. What brings you around here?" She crossed her legs, putting down the stack of papers. "How's your brother?"_

"_He's fine. He had a small fever, and Dad flipped out again... Honestly, how many times has this happened since a few years ago? Hey Nora. Haven't seen you out and about for awhile."_

"_Nora's been working on her artistic skills. Very devoted. As for your brother, seems like he's just not good with this cool damp weather."_

"_Yeah. What you drawing there, Nora?"_

"_My dreams." She was working on a bedroom scene. He noticed, in a quick glance, a girl Nora, and a woman, presumably her mother. The woman was pressing down on the girl's neck, while the girl was flailing about._

"_Never tried that. I should, sometime." He stepped closer, switching his attentions from the girl to her mother. "Do you have a moent?"_

"_Sure. What's on your mind?" He went, sitting down beside her, and struggled to come up with the right words. "Now I know something is seriously troubling you."_

"_It's my dad. He's just fawning over Joshua. I don't ever remember him being like that with me. I don't think it's jealousy. I feel like it's true. He and Mom have basically declared him their favourite son."_

"_Are you sure this isn't jealousy talking?"_

"_Positive. Dad says I should grow up and take full responsibility for Josh. He's three years old… How can I take care of him when I'm just a teenager?"_

"_Adam really asked that of you?" Margaret turned to face him completely. "When did this happen?"_

"_Just a few days ago. He got mad at me, saying that I wasn't pulling my weight. How can he judge! He didn't pull his as a father to me! Why should I care now?"_

"_Don't take your anger out on Joshua, Alex. That will only bring more chaos. Adam has made more than his share of mistakes, but-"_

"_God, don't defend him!" Alex lost control of his emotions. Anger and bitterness had built up in him throughout the last few days. Angry tears spilled from his eyes, and his blood boiled at the thought of his father being defended by the mother of the year._

"_Alex, I'm not defending him. Believe me, I know how your father looks at you. I see it every time I see him-"_

"_Then how is there a single positive thing in his body? If it was up to him, I'd be in a box six feet under right now! I know I would! He hates me, and so does my mother! I wish I was never born, some days. If they just had Josh, it'd be easier on them!"_

_This statement stunned Margaret. Here was a teenager that felt like he was hated by both his parents. He didn't care about his situation all that much. He was worried about his parents and their happiness. She took a small glance toward Nora, who was blissfully unaware of the conversation. Then she turned back to Alex, who had his face buried in his hands._

"_Alex-"_

"_No. I shouldn't have spoken like that. I should have treated you with more respect than I did. I'm-"_

"_Stop apologizing…" She wrapped her arms around him, feeling his body tense, then relax. He slowly and tentatively wrapped his arms around her, worried that she'd disappear, if he wasn't careful. Her warmth faded away along with the image. Blackness greeted Alex's eyes once more._


	4. Cascade Of Memories Part II

**Burned  
**_Chapter 4: Cascade of Memories Part 2_

**A/N: **Same drill as last time, different memories strung together. Enjoy!

* * *

_Elle's face swam into focus, and an 18-year-old Alex sat up. He had a rather large bruise around his left eye and the lower part of his forehead on the left side. "Alex, what the hell happened? First I hear you're on your way over, and then you don't show up at all!"_

"_W-what time is it, and what's the date?" He rubbed his head, feeling the knot building._

"_It's six in the morning, and you were supposed to be at the house last night! What happened?"_

"_Last thing I remember, my dad was threatening to knock me into next Tuesday…. I guess he did."_

"_What are you doing out here?" She motioned around them. Upon further inxpection, he realized they were on main street, near Dr. Fitch's office._

"_I don't remember exactly why I'm here."_

"_Maybe you left home after your dad tried to cave your face in." Elle pulled him up, and he rubbed his temples, trying to get rid of the dizziness. Jush's body in Adam's arms flashed before his eyes, and Adam's yelling echoed in his ears._

"_This isn't how it's supposed to be! I chose you!" Adam had left, taking Alex, the canoe, and Josh's body home. _

"_Get the hell out!"_

"_What? It was an accident! I-"_

"_Get the fuck out before I force you!" _

_Alex still didn't move, but hisfather made sure to. Adam poised himself, and slammed his fist into Alex's face, connecting with his eye, and succeeding in knocking him down. "Now get the fuck out!" _

_Alex backed away from his father, hastily trying to get up, while stumbling. He grabbed his jacket, wallet, and a cold cloth from his room/bathroom, and left through the backdoor._

_The images faded, leaving Alex staring at Elle. "I think I know why I'm here…."_

"_Yeah? Why?" They had started walking back toward her home, when he stopped. "Alex?"_

"_I was kicked out. Dad kicked me out."_

"_Why on earth would he do that?"_

"_Because…" He was interrupted, as they neared the corner that Elle lived off of. Judge Holloway rounded it, looking overly relieved, when she saw them coming._

"_Elle, Alex, you two almost gave me a coronary! Where have you been?" She took in Alex's appearance from the limited light given off by the street lamp above, and sighed. "It was only a matter of time…"_

"_Before what?" Alex said this, a little confused. The dizziness was coming back, and he had to lean on the building next to him._

"_Before you got into it with your father like this. Come on, there's no sense in standing out here in the middle of the business district." They followed her back to her home, and Elle and Alex headed up to her room. Margaret watched them, wondering exactly why Alex looked like he had been run over by a truck._

"_Alex, what's up? What were you about to say?" Elle flopped down onto her bed, while he sat down In an armchair across from her. "Come on, it can't be that bad."_

"_It is…" He paused, to take in breath, feeling like what happened was about to kill him. The words were having trouble forming themselves in his mind, and all he could think about was trying to erase what happened. Josh's corpse flashed before his eyes, and he visibly flinched. Alex didn't even hear Elle trying to call him out of his thoughts. Se was trying to tell him it was past eight in the morning. Nothing clicked, until she came up to him and shook him. The movement brought him back, and he stared into her cerulean eyes, filled with concern._

"_What?"_

"_You've been zoned out for about an hour and a half. What could you have possibly been thinking about to lose touch with reality like that?"_

"_It doesn't matter…" He got up, making his way to the sitting room down the hall, and collapsed onto the couch. This was where he slept, when he needed to escape his family, and it worked out right then. Elle headed back downstairs, finding her mother in the dining room, looking over some old family photos._

"_Mom, I'm worried…" She went, sitting down beside Margaret, who was looking over pictures of Nora, when she was happy, and not plagued by weird dreams. "Alex is hiding something, and it's tearing him apart…"

* * *

_

This scene faded into blackness, as the others had, and Alex's thoughts were a jumble, as he tried to make sense of this. _Why am I being shown these memories? They're all familiar, except for this last one. I don't remember this… Is this what happened to Joshua? What about the war? Was what Judge Holloway said earlier true, about me being locked away? Why do I have vivid memories of being in the war, wounded, and recovering in a military hospital? Does this tie into the dream I used to have, about Josh in that nightmarish hospital? _Another scene began to materialize.

_It was a whitewashed room, bright light above him, and there were people talking outside the slightly open door. He was in a chair, feeling like he had been hit over the head with a brick. Alex's vision was a little off, but he could tell that one of the two people was a woman. The other was a white blur, presumably a doctor in a lab coat. The voices were increasing in volume, but with his head throbbing, it was hard to understand exactly what was said._

"_You think it's best to leave him jacked up on medication, rather than having him deal with his problems?"_

"_What do you think we're doing here? He can't face what he's done, and there's no way of forcing him to, unless we try other means…" The doctor's last words were in a tone that suggested secrecy. The woman looked rigid, replying in a short tone, "How dare you even suggest-"_

"_I'm just shoving out suggestions, lady. You and your daughter have come to see him steadily for over a year, and there's been no recognition! When are you going to give up on this basketcase?"_

"_Take your opinion and shove it." The woman entered the room, seeing him looking at her. The doctor shook his head, calling security to stand at the door._

"_Alex…"_


	5. Vivid Reality

**Burned  
**_Chapter 5: Vivid Reality_

**A/N: **_This is the last of the memory chapters for now. It's a transition from memory to reality. Sorry it's took so long to update. I've been busy with school._

**Disclaimer: **_Still nothing… __

* * *

_

"_Alex?" Her voice penetrated the thick fog of his mind, causing a split second of recognition. He looked straight at her, and started to opeh his mouth to speak._

"_Wh-where…" That was all that came. His voice had been hollow, slow, and all around emotionless. That one word had been enough that day. The woman stayed for awhile, until the drugs put him into a semi-conscious state. _

_Awakening again, she was back, but a look at the large calendar on the wall said that it was a week later. She was doing some kind of paperwork, though his eyes were so blurry, he didn't see what kind._

"_Mmmm" _

_His groan earned him a shocked look. "Alex? It's about time you came 'round." Her voice was strained with exhaustion. He couldn't read her facial expression, but he thought it reflected the same. "You've been almost ccatatonic for a week. How are you feeling?_

_He really didn't know how to respond. The gold-blonde reflection of the light hitting her hair gave him a thought._

"_Elle." His tone was still a bit slow, but it was sharper than before._

"_That's right, Alex. I'm Elle's mother." She saw him looking around, seeing a beat up picture of Lillian on the shabby table._

"_Mom… Not here…" His tone was laced with sadness now. She sighed inwardly, and looked back up at him._

"_I'm sorry to say that your mother and father haven't come here at all. Elle and I have been here as often as possible. Good to have someone familiar, hm?"_

_Alex' shaky nod was more than she had hoped for. They both stared at each other for a few minutes, and then the memory faded, causing blackness to envelope him again.

* * *

_

The feeling of drowning took over him, and he felt himself sinking down into the heavy blackness, only to open his eyes, cringing against the light that was above him. His vision was blurred slightly, when his head was pressed against the metal cuff in the back of the chair, and eventually the room cleared, revealing Judge Holloway sitting in a chair, almost asleep. Curtis' voice startled her.

"Do whatever you want with him. What should I do about the girl?"

She indicated two weapons in the room. There was a gas=powered saw and a cordless drill. He chose the saw, which Alex vaguely remembered seeing in the sea of junk at his repair shop. Curtis stomped toward the door, muttering something to himself, before he left, letting the door slam with a bang. Judge Holloway finally focused her attention on the man slumped over in the chair.

_Whoa… Déjà vu… Didn't I already go through this?_

"Judge Holloway… What's-"

"You should probably call me Margaret, seeing as you're so grown up now." She straightened up, looking at him a bit more carefully. "What?"

"Nothing… I just… This seems familiar, that's all." He struggled to move, feeling the metal rusted out cuffs around his wrists and ankles. The bonds were a little tighter than he remembered, but still not impossible to break out of. He saw the locket that had apparently belonged to Nora, on the table next to him. He wasn't the only one looking at it.

"Elle was close to her sister. It was hard to explain away her absence." Judge Holloway's voice held a dark and saddened tone. Alex went to head her off.

"Hard to tell your daughter that you offed her sister, isn't it?"

"How dare you!" Her tone went back to anger. She had risen from the metal chair, picking up the locket, and glared at him. "How dare you assume-"

"How dare you? You sacrificed your child to a "God" that doesn't deserve your loyalty! Dr. Fitch and Mayor Bartlett did the same thing! Let me guess, you're going to tell me about the founders and Silent Hill's Order, now?"

She was stunned. Alex started struggling to break free of the rusty bonds, when Curtis entered the room, looking for something. He stopped, seeing Margaret glaring at her captive.

"Get on with it. The sooner these two are taken care of, the sooner we can move on." He picked up the gas can, shaking it, to see how much gasoline was left. He then filled up the circular saw. Once he was done, he shot a meaningful look in her direction, and left.

"Are you going to let the Order's pawn push you around? Think long and hard, before you answer this. Do you really want to lose another daughter? Do you want Elle's blood on your hands? I sure as hell don't want yours on mine!"

She turned away from him at his questions. Her face was unreadable. Her voice was almost the same way when she spoke. "I killed Nora for the sake of my family and others. As far as Elle's concerned, I'd rather her be in heaven with her sister, rather than being in the hellish remains of Shepherd's Glen."

At this, Alex struggled even harder, causing his ankles to bleed, but they were finally freed, when he twisted his feet out of them. He repeated what he'd done earlier to his wrists, allowing them to slip from the cuffs of the chair. "Fuck Shepherd's Glen! It's ruined! If we get out of here, I'm leaving this place!"

"You may not care, but I do! I gave up my kid to keep the place safe! Nora died, thinking I hated her! How do you think that makes me feel, knowing that you don't give a damn about that!"

"I never said I didn't! I never said I didn't care about you or Nora! Damnit, you were more of a parent than I ever had! How can I just say forget you!" He crossed the room, resting both hands on her shoulders. Her flinch was what worried him. "What is it?"

She shook her head, and turned away from him. There were silent tears now, and they were falling openly. Alex spun her around to face him, only to feel her grip him tightly. Her arms had wrapped themselves around his neck, while her face was buried in the alcove of his neck and shoulder. His arms slowly and tentatively snaked around her slender waist. Her entire body began to shake with silent sobs.

_Something I said? What in the world did I do to have this happen? I'm not the world's most sensitive person, but I guess I'll have to play this out._

He got a strange urge, but didn't dare to act on it. It was odd, because he had always thought of her as a mother figure. His eyes moved to observe her, and it didn't surprise him that he had a hard time believing the woman before him was Elle's mother. She slowly raised her head to look into his face, expecting to see him horrorstruck, but instead, there was an unreadable expression. This stumped her for all of a few seconds, until she noted that Alex's hands were not at her waist anymore. His left was slowly removing a loose strand of hair from her pale face. His right was now at the middle of her back. "Alex…"

He slowly took in her appearance, tired, broken, and outright different. His right hand stayed at her back, and his left was tempted to stay put. Her hands now rested at the base of his neck, and he felt a knot in his chest that had formed the second he made contact with her.

Both were just standing there, unaware of the time passing. She was lost in the expression on his face, while he was drowning in the endless blue of her eyes. Without warning, he leaned down, capturing her lips with his own, pulling her closer, and practically drowning in the feeling of her being so close. The knot in his chest slowly dissipated, as she, instead of breaking away, deepened the kiss. They gave into each others' demands, and soon, he was pressed against the wall, clinging to her, while she was to him.

_This can't be real…. How is it that I go from thinking about a drill in my leg to this? Elle'll kill me if she ever finds out… _

When both were out of air, they broke apart, still holding onto each other, but gasping for breath. She gave him a look. _ If looks could kill, I'd be done… _ Surprisingly, she didn't let go. He was surprised at his own behavior. Here he was in a bloody maze, and all he could do was think about something like this.

Alex looked at her, then at himself, seeing if there was something wrong with his shirt, because she was looking at it. Half the buttons on his jacket were gone, causing it to flare open, and his tee shirt was ripped from being dragged along the ground, and from what all he'd been doing in the past days. He shoved off the tattered jacket, and proceeded to rip off the remains of his tee shirt, when a stabbing pain went through his shoulders.

_Okay… Maybe I shouldn't do this. I think I was pinned to that chair one too many times._

Instead of pulling it over his head, Alex simply ripped it down the front, shaking it off, afterwards. He then pulled the jacket back on, seeing as it got snagged on the wall behind him, and resumed looking at the woman before him.

_Going from what happened earlier to now… That must have been some elevator ride…. Damned vivid dreams…._


	6. Truth

**Burned  
**_Chapter 6: Truth_

**A/N: **Sorry. This is another short chapter. I'll have chapter 7 up maybe tomorrow or the next day. Going to the beach on Sunday, so I may not update that week. Maybe I will, though. Hard to tell.  Enjoy!

* * *

Curtis walked back into the room where Elle was still restrained, taunting her by revving up the circular saw. Her scream was music to his ears, and it only drove him to come closer, bringing the blade close to her chest.

"Funny thing, family. You love 'em, and yet you've gotta hate 'em, huh?" Elle staared in confusion at his statement, only breaking off her stare, when he moved again. He started pacing around her, allowing the motor in the saw to buzz and sputter just beyond her ear, causing her to become extremely nervous. "Your mother sent me to do her dirty work."

At her shocked expression, he continued, chuckling. "Yep. She sent me to do what she couldn't do the second time." He brought the saw dangerously close to her jaw, jerking it back, at her scream. "Yeah, I'll let you in on a little secret, kid. Your mother went and killed your sister."

"NO! Mom wouldn't do that! She lovs Nora! How could she do anything to her and then lie to me, saying she went missing!"

"Because she did. Your little brat sister struggled, too. Too bad, too. Your mother is dealin' with the "soldier" now."

"Why the emphasis on soldier?"

"You in denial, kid! Your pal, the sheriff's kid, isn't some brave soldier! He's a nutcase!"

* * *

"I want the truth…"

"What?" His question caught her off-guard. Alex had been regaining his breath, and suddenly he says this. "The truth?"

"I know you know more than you're telling. The night I got kicked out, you expected it. Why?"

Margaret took a few seconds to study him. "I knew tensions between you and your father were high. He was playing favourites, and you weren't holding the winning hand. Joshua was the absolute center of your parents' universe, and I think I know why."

"I know why. Dad admitted it to me before he died in the church, thinking I was a priest. He said he was trying to make things easier for himself. Typical Adam Shepherd." Alex examined the shelf behind the chair he had been bound to, seeing the dagger, a first aid kit, and an energy drink. "It's not right…"

"No, it isn't. I knew that your father would attempt to do something like this, but do you happen to remember just why he kicked you out?"

"It's blurry. I remember telling Josh that I wanted to go to the lake that night. I woke him up, and we headed out, but the rest is a blur." Alex opened the door to the room, looking out into the hallway, seeing nothing. "All clear. Where do you think Elle is?"

"Probably near the other side of this maze. Curtis said something about splitting you two up. Do you remember Elle finding you in the street, the night Adam kicked you out?"

Alex motioned for her to go ahead of him, and he shut the door behind them. "I think so. I remember Elle asking what happened."

They headed down the hallway, turning left, and Alex tried the door. It opened. He continued walking, thinking about the flashes of memories he'd had. _Were they all true? Were these last few glimpses into the past that I tried so hard to forget? Was I really in a psych ward, in denial? Why didn't my parents come, then? Surely Dad would have wanted to degrade me while I was drugged up… _"Was the hospital real, I mean, was I really there?"

His question struck her. Alex had stopped walking, and was now just standing there. Tenatively, she took his shoulder and turned him to face her again. "What do you mean? You were in the qsych ward at Alchemilla hospital. What made you think of this?"

"I just have memories of this war… I was fighting, and was injured, then discharged from the army. Now, I'm starting to doubt that."

"Elle and I would often come to check on you. I'm sorry to say that your parents didn't bother. You were usually in a catatonic state, but it was a relief in a way to see you there."

"How? How was it a relief to see me drugged up like that? If what you're saying is true, there was no truth to me being in the army, and I really have lost it! How do I know that this is real!"

Margaret gently let a hand slide down his face, feeling his tense muscles in his shoulder and arm. "Alex, there's something you should know. Deep down, I'm sure it's there, but you're just not seeing what truly happened that night…"

Before they could say or do anything, an order soldier came crashing out of a room, pipe in hand, and stared at the two of them. "You'll bun in hell for your disobedience!" He swung the pipe, missing spectacularly, and was rewarded with a knife piercing the leather of his clothes, and the cold feel of the dagger plunging into his neck. Alex withdrew the dagger, whipping the blade clean on a scrap of his tee shirt he had kept in his pocket. A gurgling sound told him that the order soldier would be drowned in his own blood soon, so he looked into the room, where the man had just exited.

On the table in the top left corner, there was an old brass key, and to the left of it, was a beat up handgun. He checked to se how many unfired bullets were still there, and pocketed it, along with the spare pack of rounds on the shelf above the gun.

"What were you going to say, something about what really happened the night we were going to the lake?" Alex shoved open the door, and again, looked around. Seeing no order soldiers, he proceeded further west, hearing the distinct growl of a saw in the distance.

"Alex, the night you and Joshua went out on the lake, he showed you something. What was it? Was it your father's ring?" She saw the blank expression on his face, and waited for the recognition.

* * *

_The ring glinted in the dim light given off by the flashlight at his side. Josh was grinning with triumph, not seeing the dark look on his brother's face. "See? I guess that makes me cooler, since I wasn't supposed to show it to anyone, especially you."_

"_What a load of crap. I guess Dad told you you were the star of the family, huh? He always has you in his sights, lets you get away with everything, and even Mom thinks you're perfect!" Alex took the ring, glaring at it, then proceeded to dangle it tauntingly before Josh._

"_Dad doesn't like me more!"_

"_Hell yeah he does! Why is it that I have to basically beg for his approval, and still never get it, when all you have to do is walk into a room, and he falls all over you! You've got Dad and Mom around your finger!"_

"_I DO NOT! GIVE THAT BACK!" Josh reached out, grabbing the chain, and proceeded to pull the ring out of Alex's tight grasp. He suddenly lost his footing, slipping and snapping his neck on the side of the canoe. Josh fell over the side, slipping lifelessly to the bottom of the lake.

* * *

_

The moment of recognition came, causing Alex to slowly turn around. His hand shook, as it dipped down into his pants pocket, pulling out the same ring and chain that brought about his brother's death. "I killed him…"


	7. Elle

**Burned  
**_Chapter 7: Elle_

**A/N: **Next Chapter! I'm surprised I'm working on this right now. Anyway, here it is. Elle's fate is revealed (lol) Enjoy!

* * *

Elle's anger took over, and she struggled against her bonds. "How can you say that! How can you say that he's mentally insane! You don't even know him!"

Curtis brought the blade dangerously close to her throat, grinning wickedly when she flinched back, ceasing all movement. "That's right. You know very well that I don't have the patience for you and your witty comments! Thaat's what got me so damned pissed at your mother."

"Your mother… She has issues with everything! I can't get it through her head that we have no time to think about our actions today! This has to get done! If not, we're all damned to hell."

* * *

"You killed who?"

"My brother. I killed Josh!" He stepped back when she reached out to touch him. "Don't!" He turned away again, rushing on through the hallway, back the way they came, and came across a locked door. Remembering the brass key in his pocket, he shoved it into the lock, hearing her approaching footsteps. "Stay away! I might kill you too."

Margaret kept going, hearing the almost sarcasm in his voice, and noticed that he was headed right toward a four way intersection. "Look out! You don't know what's around these corners! There are multiple order soldiers running around this place!"

"Who cares, I'm a nutcase, remember?" He headed out into the four way, seeing two shadows coming at him from the west. "Fuck you, stupid pawns!" He pulled out the pistol, shooting both n the head, through their masks. "Now, out of my way." The path ahead, lead to a square chamber, with four doors. One that was unlocked lead down another hallway, and the sound of the saw got gradually louder. "Elle."

He headed to the far end, seeing a door, and looked through the glass. Curtis was still taunting Elle with the saw, bringing it ever closer. Alex tried the door, and he tried to jump the gate, separating him from the other door. His foot got hung up in the mess of bars,. Kicking it, he finally freed himself, and leapt over the top. The second door was jammed, and Alex used the spare pipe that had practically rotted off of a machine. Whe open, Curtis turned, dropping his cigarette at the sight of the believed soldier.

"Thought you'd been taken care of, boy."

"Lay off, Curtis. You don't have to play into their hand-"

"I ain't playin into nobody's hand, boy. I do what I please. Although, it's such a shame that suck a pretty girl has to go to waste…" He moved towards Alex, swinging the saw madly. Reflexes weren't as quick as they should have been, because the blade grazed the side of his face, as Alex turned away from it. He then pivoted on his left foot, swinging his right out at Curtis, nailing him in the jaw. This prolonged the danger, and Alex withdrew the dagger. Curtis started running toward him again, and Alex took the dagger, planting it firmly into the man's wrist, causing him to snarl with pain. Taking advantage of this, Alex stabbed the other wrist, causing Curtis to drop the saw.

"Go fuck yourself, Curtis!" Alex watched as the saw came down, cutting into Curtis' groin. The blood went everywhere, and his scream was almost cliché. It was almost like the cry of a defeated warrior in a movie Alex saw once.

"Elle… You ok?" He slowly made his way around Curtis, and dropped to his knees, untying her ankles. "Where's Wheeler?"

"I don't know… They took him away. Where's my mom?"

"Outside. She's fine."

"I don't care! She was in on this! Curtis said she killed Nora-"

"Easy, Elle. You're a little hard to untie, when you get mad and fidgety."

"Sorry…" She calmed down, and after a minute, Alex cut her wrists and chest free. He pinned her with a hard look, for a second, thinking about what Margaret had told him. She gave him an equally intense piercing look. "What?"

"Elle, I know why she did it."

"Well, why?"

"She should be the one to tell you. It's not my place to-"

"Since when have you cared about that!" Elle was clearly upset, and no amount of reasoning would help. Elle headed for the door, but before she opened it, Alex pulled her back. "Elle, think about what you're going to do and say, before you go out there."

"Too late for that."

Alex thought about what he had found when he had walked out that door earlier in his dream. The executioner had been waiting. Since there was no scream, he assumed that nothing had happened. Elle headed out the door, seeing her mother, and went off.

"How can you call yourself my mother!"

"Elle-"

"YOU KILLED MY SISTER!" Alex moved and caught Elle's shoulder, keeping her from lunging out at her mother. "Get off me!"

"No. You're acting rashly-"

"Alex, when have you cared about that? You went all out, going around, and just acting on your impulses, all this time. How can you say I'm acting rashly!"

"Alex, don't. I deserve what's coming." Margaret had thrown hier hands up into the air, and looked directly at Elle. "Go. Keep talking."

"You KILLED my sister, and you made me think that Nora had been MISSING!"

"What was I supposed to say, Elle?"

"How about the truth? That's all I ask of you, and you give me this bullshit!" Elle turned back to Alex. "You knew about this, didn't you?"

"Elle-" Alex was cut off as Elle slapped him. "What the hell was that for?"

"For not being straignt with me!"

"I told you all of a few seconds ago, that I didn't think I was the right one to tell you."

Elle was surprised that Alex wasn't sharp with her. His voice was still as calm and tranquil as usual. She turned back to her mother, who was looking down the hallway they were standing in. "I want answers, now."

"You'll get them, just not here."


	8. Alone

**Burned  
**C hapter 8: Alone

* * *

"Come on, Mom. No more stalling!"

"No. It's not safe here. It won't be safe until we get the hell out of here. Alex, was there any indication in that room of where to go to get out of here?"

"Sorry. All there was was a key on the wall. It's marked as 301. What's in room 301?"

"I have no idea. All I know is that there's a freight elevator that leads back up to the church."

"No way out of the church, unless you want to get tangled up in a shitload of barbed wire." Alex looked around the corridor, seeing the door back at the far end. "Is there another way out?"

"I don't know. There has to be, though. Surely these people would think of another way out, rather than just making one exit."

"Only way out is apparently back this way." Alex had Elle go in front of him, to keep the two separated for the moment. They could knock heads later. What seemed to matter most was to get out of this rat trap. He shoved open the door, leading back into the block, and looked around. "Okay, where to now…" The numbers on the doors were faded, but they were in the 300s. Alex pulled out the key he had found in the room where Curtis had been, and he tried it on all three doors that were left. One worked, and the door swung open, revealing a storeroom.

In the room was a large sack that contained the laser pistol that had been In his room, two health drinks, a first aid kit, the blue-steel shotgun, and two serum. Looking at the last two items, the serum, he thought back to the memory of the hospital. The thought of shooting himself up with that serum made him sick. _Just like the doctors, doing anything for a quick-fix._ He strapped the shotgun to his back, pocketing the two health drinks, and finally shoving the first aid kit into his back pocket. There was a blackened steel pipe lying on the floor, and Alex handed it to Elle. "You'll need to arm yourself. I can't promise that I'll be able to protect you." He then turned to Margaret. "I think you should have this. I have no use for it." He handed over the ceremonial dagger. "A founder's heir should have it, and I guess I'm not the one that should have had it."

He searched the room thoroughly, finding a beat up map in the far corner. "Well, this should give us answers."

"What is it?" Elle moved, looking over his shoulder, and sighed when she saw it was a map. "Good. Now we can get out of this place!"

"Don't get too happy. I don't know how many more of these thugs are left in here. We could be walking right into an ambush…" Alex studied the map, seeing that there was a circular room at the top right, and it looked like that was the only place to go, because the mine's elevator was jammed, and the mine carts couldn't get back out… or so he had thought.

"How're the mine tracks?"

"What?" Both Elle and her mother looked to him in confusion. Seeing that they had both answered at the same time, they shot each other looks.

"The mine carts, could they get us out of here?" Alex headed out of the room, turning right, and walking the short distance to the next intersection.

"Those things haven't been used for quite some time. I'm sure the tracks are rotten by now… Why?"

"That looks like our way out. Do you know about this room?" He indicated the circular room at the top, and Margaret flinched back. "What? Something happen there?"

She didn't answer. Alex continued to make right turns, until he came to a long hallway. It was a straight shot to the last room, and they heard some commotion from the other side of one of the doors on their left. It sounded like someone screaming, but it wasn't a "damnit, I'm in pain" scream. It was more of an attention grabber. Elle looked through one of the foggy windows in the doors, and gasped. "Wheeler!"

"Wheeler? How's he look?" Alex went to the door, attempting to open it. "Damn… We'll have to find another way in."

"Try that door! There's a glass window linking the two rooms."

Alex moved to the door to the left of Wheeler's, and shoved it open. The door practically fell off its hinges, falling into the dirty glass window, smashing it. Wheeler was strapped to an old fashioned electric chair, not daring to ove, due to the fact that the chair was still live. "Wheeler…"

"G-get m-m-me out of this thing…" The frustration in his voice was obvious, but he didn't dare shout.

"Hang on." Alex slowly clipped the wires, watching Wheeler visibly relax. Apparently, there was a small current running through the chair, the whole time. Elle went and undid the bonds, causing Wheeler to slide down into the chair even more so than he already was. Alex tossed her the spare medkit from his back pocket, and she used ot to deal with the superficial wounds.

"How long you been here, Wheeler?" Elle finished placing a long protective bandage over a chest wound.

"About fifteen minutes… They g-gave me a good beat-down, first…" He was still very cautious, as he sat up straighter. Wheeler turned "Margaret… The dagger, I saw Adam with it a few times. What's it represent?"

"It's the key…" She sounded far off, like her mind was somewhere else. She examined the dagger in her hand, remembering a conversation with Adam, at the mention of his name.

* * *

"_I thought I told your folks to stay away from my family." Adam walked into her office, looking both tired and exasperated. "What's it going to take?"_

"_Look Adam, I know what this feud is about." Margaret rose from her desk, coming to stand before him. "I will not let you get away with ignoring your son. You hate my family, because I treat him for what he is, a human being!"_

"_I told you why that can't happen. You of all people know the problems with that."_

_Margaret snorted. "Come on, not that damned excuse again! You think that just because one of my children has to die, I'll treat them any different? How foolish do you have to be? Are you trying to make it easier? If so, for whom? You or him?"_

"_Why I-"_

"_Don't even think about it! Get out of my office, and I don't want you to bring this up again! Alex has the right to live while he can, because it's damned obvious that you've chosen him! Don't deprive him of what all children need! I know your wife doesn't approve!"_

"_Lillian does what she knows will be right. You may be a fool to make it harder for yourself, but I won't have my son struggling, looking up at me, thinking I'm betraying him! If you want that guilt on yourself, be my guest!"_

"_Lillian is no fool, Adam. She'll be wracked with guilt for what she's doing, I've no doubt. I'll live with the knowledge that I loved my daughter!"_

_Adam left the office, letting the door close with a bang, behind him. Margaret turned to the window, picking up a picture of Nora and Elle on her desk. "I know I won't have a shadow on my heart for not treating my children like they mean something. Can you say the same, Adam?"

* * *

_

She was pulled out of the memory, by the sound of Elle's voice.

"I don't get it. Why were we all pulled into this mess?" Wheeler looked up at her with the same question in his eyes. "Good question."

Alex looked up sharply, at Elle's question. He looked toward the door in the back left of the room, and turned to her. "Doesn't matter. What matters is getting the hell out of here. Wheeler, you good to move?"

"A little. Can't guarantee much, though. What'd you have in mind?"

"There's a mine vent that's just a few yards back. The rock is jagged enough to climb up. There's something here that I have to do. This place isn't done with me yet." He moved toward the door at the back of the room, and Elle stopped him.

"Woah, Alex. You aren't just going out there alone. I'm coming with you-"

"Elle, I won't lose another daughter. Go with Wheeler. That way I know you'll be safe."

"Don't even act like you care now! You say that, but you went and killed Nora? Damn, you're a hypocrite!

"Hypocrisy had nothing to do with it. I had to make a choice, and I chose Nora."

"Oh, so Nora wasn't as important?"

"On the contrary, she was as important to me as you are!" Margaret's voice had elevated to an angry shout. "Do you honestly think that I could easily wrap my hands around her throat, strangle her, and just turn away? I can rest easy, knowing that you will never have to choose one of your children!"

"Fuck this, I'm not letting Alex go alone!"

"I won't let that happen. You go with Wheeler. I'll go with him."

Alex looked from the arguing women to Wheeler, who just shook his head, mouthing "I'd kill to have women fight over me like that." Alex turned back to them.

"It's best I go alone. I can't imagine or predict what's waiting for me in that room."


	9. Lillian's Confession

**Burned  
**_Chapter 9: Lillian's Confession_

**A/N: **Here's the ninth chapter! I never thought I'd take this story this far. Anyway, hopw y'all liked the last one. Enjoy!

* * *

"Alex, are you insane? Do you think any of us would let you go alone?" Elle glared at him. Her eyes rivaled her mother's when she did.

"I know, but I don't want anymore casualties than there have already been. I've already lost both my parents, and I'd rather die myself, than watch either of you two."

"Battling one's demons is noble and effective for healing, but I'd trust that by now, Alex you know it's best not to do it alone." Alex almost felt relieved, hearing Margaret's calming voice, but that relief was soon broken, by the sound of rushing water.

"GO! Get to the mine vent! There's not much time!" Alex shoved open the door, leading back into the hallway. Elle and Wheeler moved past him. He turned to Margaret. "Go. I won't lose you too."

"No, you won't, but I've already abandoned you once. I'll be damned if I do again."

He took a moment to think about what she had said, but decided to decrypt it later. Moving to the door at the back, Alex pulled it open, but nearly fell back, due to the smell.

"Shit…"

In the room were bodies, all shrouded in white, hanging from the ceiling. Flies and maggots surrounded each hanging bundle. Both Alex and Margaret dove through the room, attempting to avoid vomiting, and they moved into the hallway, once more, on the other side of a set of double doors.

Taking a few minutes to catch his breath, Alex turned to Margaret. "You said that you abandoned me once before, what did you mean?"

She leaned against the wall, pinning him with a pensive look. "I was barred from Alchemilla hospital, when you were there, after the accident. The Order still ran the town, even if they didn't make themselves known to outsiders. They made it seem as though you had gone completely insane, wandering the corridors, talking about some war. That was when I turned away. Had I stayed vigilant, you may have dealt with this mess sooner, and wouldn't have had to see all this chaos."

"Don't blame yourself. I'm the one who started this… Josh is dead, Mom and Dad had to die, and now, the Order Is after all of Shepherd's Glen's people too…"

The double doors ahead looked almost daunting, and it showed on Alex's face. He always hated feeling this way. It was almost like he dreaded what was on the other side of them, which was probably the truth. The fear started back when he was younger, and Josh was immersed in becoming like his brother. Alex would come home, hearing Josh playing with army toys, and Alex would help him make battle simulations. During this, however, he'd hear voices behind his parents' closed bedroom doors. Normally, it was just them talking privately, like they always did at night, but sometimes, there was shouting or harsh voices involved. Thinking he was paranoid at the time, Alex worried that they were talking about him. There were also the meetings in Town Hall. The founders' families would meet In the center room, talking about things the children weren't allowed to hear. Sometimes, one of the children would have to wait in the entrance, while the parents were talking, that is if they didn't have a choice but to be there. Sometimes Alex, Elle, and Nora would stay in the park, finding things to do. Scarlet would be there too, playing with her dolls, and Joey would be the one to be at Town Hall. Sometimes, he'd be playing with the plants in his father's office, though. When the children had to be there, they would sit in the chairs, watching the doors, waiting for their parents to come out. Alex would just sit there with his surrogate family, the Holloway girls, and wait for the lecture on how he should not be around them later. Sometimes he and Elle would go to her mom's office to talk.

* * *

"_What do you think they're talking about in there?"_

"_Who knows… Founders' stuff, I guess. I wish they wouldn't have meetings like this…"_

"_Why, Alex?"_

"_They just tend to stress my parents out. After every meeting, they both tend to get mad at me, quicker than usual, I mean."_

"_God knows you don't need that…"

* * *

_

Alex was pulled out of his memory by Margaret's hand on his shoulder. "You alright, Alex?"

"No." The thought of his parents getting more scrupulous turned into grief for their deaths. His mother's face flitted through his mind, tears coming down her pale skin, her teeth gritted together in pain. Then his father's last expression entered his mind's eye. The man was tethered to the doorframe, and begging Alex to forgive him. In truth, Alex had in the guise of a priest, but his father was none the wiser. Adam had never had the peace of mind that his son had forgiven him.

"Mom and Dad shouldn't have had to die…"

This statememt shocked her. Alex had given his parents nothing but grief, when they played favourites with Josh, and now…

"They had mom on a stretching rack. She practically begged me to shoot her, sparing her of the pain…"

"That's too much to ask of a kid who's just finding out the truth, huh?"

"No kidding… I didn't know what to do. How can I shoot her? She's my mother. Regardless of what she did, I couldn't bring myself to do it… On the other hand, I know what will happen when that rack starts to move. It'll tear her apart, literally."

"What did you do?"

"What choice did I have? I could either kill her, making sure she didn't feel pain, or I could not, letting her be pulled and killed… It wasn't the easiest decision." Alex pulled out a photo of her and Judge Holloway talking in the hallway of his home. "This Is all I have left of her, along with several photos of her, dad, and Josh. Not the best reminders, right?"

His voice had started to crack on the last statement. Margaret understood, though. Having reminders of his dead family wasn't the best thing to live with. She looked down at the photo in his hand, seeing a moment when she and Lillian were having a heart to heart moment, venting about their husbands. As she looked up to see his expression, she saw his chest heaving. He was struggling to breathe. "Alex, easy. Take a deep breath. Slow down."

He slid down the wall, falling to the floor, and didn't notice the folded envelope drop from his torn jacket pocket. His hands surrounded his face, shielding him from her observant eyes. She saw the writing on the envelope. It was narrow, and curved. _Lillian… _

Alex finally looked up, feeling cold metal hit his chest, and looked down again. The Shepherd family ring had dragged against his skin, reminding him of his parents. The corner of the faded white envelope caught his eye.

"Huh?" He picked it up, reading the front of it.

_To My Absent Son_

"What's this?" His eyes roved over the words again, his brain finally clicking. "I picked up this envelope when I went into Mom and Dad's room. It was sticking out of her jewelry case… Until now, I completely forgot about it." His hands shakily opened the flap on the back, and he pulled out a tearstained piece of yellowed paper. "This is Mom's handwriting…" Carefully, Alex unfolded the paper, starting to read.

* * *

_To My Absent Son,_

_If you have found this, one of three things has happened. I am either to the point where I cannot carry the burden of my guilt, judgment has passed, or I am otherwise inhibited. The below statements are nothing but the truth, though these words are some of the hardest to comprehend. I am writing this now, so that there will be some semblance of regret, in the event that I am not able to tell you myself._

_Alex, things have been set into motion, not because of something you've done, but because of your ancestors. Issac Shepherd, along with the other founders were afraid of God, when abandoning the Order. They decided on a sacrifice, to appease the God they feared and respected. This sacrifice was their children. One of each family's children was to be willingly given, every fifty years._

_When you were born, your father and I knew that you would have to leave this world, long before your time. Adam decided that to make this easier on you, he would have to sacrifice his love for you, as well. At the time, I agreed that it was the best option, of all bad ones. However, when we were blessed with a second son, Joshua, we didn't consider changing our minds. This is where we made our mistake. Joshua was younger, more available for your burden, but we were so overjoyed with another chance, that we were blinded by that option. _

_For this, I must apologize. We were blinded, and did the best thing for ourselves, rather than thinking about what mattered most, our neglected son. Now, something has happened that will doom us all. We as a couple made a choice, and we are paying for it. Jushua's death, ironically being the same way you were supposed to be sacrificed, has brought back the Order. They will do whatever it takes to strike fear in all of us, even if it means killing all those who symbolize even a breath of hope._

_I beg you to understand, although it is a hard thing to ask of you, we had to send you away, after the accident. You were never the same. You would stare for hours on end, seeing nothing. You broke off all contact with anyone, even Elle Holloway. They were the most concerned. They had seen the side of you that we didn't give ourselves the chance to see. This is what I most regret. It was hard on both your father and myself to see you locked away. We couldn't bring ourselves to see you like that. We saw what truly happened to you in that hospital, when Margaret tricked them into releasing you. The damage you'd suffered at their hands… It was enough to cause eternal suffering for both of us.

* * *

_

Alex looked briefly up at Judge Holloway, then glanced back down at the letter.

* * *

_Now, I pray that you will be able to overcome all that has happened, and continue with your life, because it is the least we can do. If there was a way to reverse time and our decision, it would have been done ages ago, but there is not a soul on this Earth who would possess this power. Not even God above could hear our cries for the end of your suffering._

_This is my heart-felt and guilt-stricken confession. I pray you will take it to heart, remembering me as a mother, trying to do what was best for her only son._

_Loving you from within the stars,_

_Mom

* * *

_

He could barely read the last two lines. His mind was focused on something else. "Was I really brought back here before? How did I get sent back…"


	10. Temporary Escape

**Burned  
**_Chapter 10: Temporary Escape

* * *

_

His question was almost unheard. Alex's voice had gone just above a whisper. He looked at the letter in his hands again.

_We saw what truly happened to you in that hospital, when Margaret tricked them into releasing you. The damage you'd suffered at their hands… It was enough to cause eternal suffering for both of us._

"What did she mean?"

Alex placed the letter back into the envelope, and slowly stood up, His face was unreadable, and it was clear that he was straining o remember a time when he was home before this.

"You know I told you Elle and I would visit you in the hospital?" At his affirmative nod, she continued. "Well, on one of my last visits, the room you stayed in, 205, was completely dark. They said you reacted to the light. At first, I believed them. The doctors were less than truthful before, but this was something minor. I entered the room, closing the door, and…" Margaret paused, bringing up the memory.

* * *

_Alex was sitting on the bed, shrouded in semi-darkness. Only the light from the clock and the light coming through the cracks atop and below the door were present. His face was unreadable, due to the darkness, but there was some tension in the room._

"_Alex…" She got no answer. He turned slowly, pinning her with a hollow look. Margaret had not expected him to be this out of touch. She slowly approached, seeing him barely move, like a cobra, waiting to strike its prey at any second, upon crossing an invisible boundary. "Alex, I need you to say something…" Still no answer or response.

* * *

_

"You were unresponsive. Everything I tried ended in failure. Nothing I said struck a nerve. The doctors had said that you were completely out of touch with reality, but there was something about what they said that positively bled lies."

* * *

"_Alex, I know you're still in there! For the past two months, Elle and I have come here, seen the old you, and now there can't be nothing but a hollow shell left."_

_The next week was spent watching him. All he would do was sit and stare. Occasionally, he'd fight when they'd come to give him treatment. The method of treating him was something that needed to be clarified. All Margaret knew was that he would not even look up for several hours afterwards. Hours would go by like years in that darkened room._

_Alex sat motionless after one of his ast treatments. The silence in the room was deafening to the other occupant, but he apparently didn't notice. This went on for a few more hours. Suddenly, his eyes shot open, the pent up fear and uncertainty was evident In his grey-blue eyes. Margaret nearly jumped out of her skin, when he spoke._

"_I can't see you."_

"_W-what?"_

"_I can't see you…"

* * *

_

"It was a breakthrough that day. For the first time, you were aware, awake, and able to directly communicate. It was something I honestly didn't expect anymore."

* * *

_Alex sat up a little straighter, seeing only her silhouette. His words were a bit slowed, but he was talking nonetheless. "How long… How long have you been here?"_

"I'd been there for a week at least. I'd come almost everyday. Elle would think I was working late. I couldn't let her know what kind of condition they had you in. You had no idea about it, though. The drug-induced semi-coma the doctors had you in would make sure you had no attachment to the real world."

"_A week?" His voice held a surprised look. The little light in the room allowed her to see his eyes a little wider than usual. "You've been here a week?"_

"_Yes. I've been coming here for a week, but I don't think it's registered with you." She heard a faint dripping noise, and the light from the machinery in the corner showed that the IV that was in his arm was loose. The liquid was dripping into the floor. "They've kept you medicated for God knows how long, so it doesn't surprise me that you have no idea…" _

_Alex looked around, almost frustrated, and finally pinned her with a stare. "I want to see you…"_

"_Alright…" She paused, turning toward him again. "They told me you had sensitivity to light, is that true?"_

"_What…"_

"_Thought so… Hold on."

* * *

_

"Managing to turn that light on was something I feel like should have happened sooner. When that lightfinally flickered on, I saw just wyat those so-called doctors were doing. I saw bruises, from where you had struggled, while in moments of clarity, to get free. I saw several different burns all over your head and neck. It was horrible, and it's something I had to do something about….."

* * *

_Seeing her face, Alex looked confused. He finally saw the color drain from her face, and asked the question. "What?"_

"_Alex, you don't remember this, do you?"_

"_Remember what?" He looked extremely confused now._

"_Look down…" Alex slowly looked down at his upper chest, seeing red, swollen flesh, blackened skin, and a dark bruise going down into his lower chest. He then twisted around, seeing his face in the foggy and dirty window. As he made the connection that what he was seeing was him, the pain crept closer, making him ache all over. It gradually got worse, as the medication wore off._

_His teeth were gritted as he spoke now. "W-what Happened… to me?"_

"_I don't know…" Tears were brimming In her eyes, seeing him struggling. Her eyes went from him to the door. "I'm going to find out…" She quickly moved toward him, gently placing a hand on his shoulder. "First, I'm getting you out of here."_

"_How…" His teeth were gritted still, and there was a slight growl to his voice, now. She gave something akin to a wicked grin._

"_They saw Adam, when you were brought in. They didn't see Lillian. For all they know, the nurse that straps that bag to your arm could be your mother."_

"_Huh…" He groaned, feeling pain spread all over his body, and felt like there was something tied to all his limbs, pulling him apart.

* * *

_

"While I did some digging, I realized that they didn't know who Lillian was. I managed to fool them, saying I had just found out my husband had gone behind my back, putting you in that hospital. It took some convincing, and a fake DNA test, but eventually…"

* * *

"_I won't-"_

"_You'd rather face a lawsuit? You'd rather face what hell I'll bring this place, when I let it slip that a man can just bring a kid here without anyone knowing? Is this a place of healing, or a place of death?"_

"_Look lady, I can't-"_

"_The DNA came back positive, and now you won't release my son!"_

"_It's not like that-"_

_Alex was hearing this angry argument outside his door. The room had been quiet, until the head of staff came to confront Margaret. He had carried on this argument for the last half hour, and it was entertaining to see her put him in his place._

"_Fine, alright? Fine! You want this psycho released, then let him kill you in your sleep. It won't be my problem anymore. Let him bring all the problems back. Go on. Here's the release form. He's your personal hell, now."_

_Margaret re-entered the room, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You're going home…"

* * *

_

"I argued on your behalf, fooling the chief of staff, and eventually got you released. It took awhile to catch a boat back to Shepherd's Glen…"

"Mom and Dad acted like they hadn't seen me in years! Are you telling me that they lied, saying I had been gone too long?" Alex finally found words to say after this odd tale. Margaret sighed, remembering the return home.

* * *

"_It's not the brightest idea to let your father know you're here, right now. First, we'd best get you cleaned up. You look like you haven't slept for a year…"_


	11. The Order's Return

**Burned  
**_Chapter 11: The Order's Return_

**A/N: **This one's a little easier to follow. Same deal as the last chapter, though. There will be flashback/RW moments, just like Ch. 10. Plus, it should explain why there are so many bodies in the Nightmare part of the beginning of the game.

* * *

Alex stared at her for a few minutes. The thought of him leaving the hospital before, was almost unreal. His only memory of coming home was this last time, coming back in the cab of Travis Grady's truck. He had no memory of coming back before then. "And this really happened?"

"Oh yes. It happened, not without serious consequence, though. Getting you back through Shepherd's glen wasn't easy. I waited till dark, before leaving the docks. I got to my office, calling Elle, letting her know I was on the way home."

* * *

"_Mom? Where have you been? I called your office, and got no answer, a few minutes ago."_

"_I stepped out. I'm on my way home, though. Meet me on the intersection in front of Town Hall."_

"_Ok, but what's going on? Why so late?"_

"_You'll see." _

_Hanging up the phone, Margaret turned to Alex, who was sitting on the couch in her office. His eyes were darting around the room, half expecting someone with a syringe to jump out at him. They had freed him of the straight jacket, allowing her to see part of his chest, from the v-neck shirt they had him in. It didn't surprise her to see the red and irritated flesh. "Come on, we'll get you home and out of that prison outfit."_

_A weak smile flitted over him, quickly replaced by a frown. His head began to ache slightly. They slowly made their way out of Town Hall, and saw Elle coming up Craven Ave. She took one look at Alex, and shot a look at her mother._

"_Where has he been?"_

"_I'll explain later. We've got to get him home. It'll be hell if Adam and the others find him here." _

_They proceeded back down the street, and took the side street that led home. The house rivaled Alex's own. It had somewhat the same framework, but it was almost reversed. Shoving the key into the lock, Margaret looked around, before opening the door._

"_You expecting someone, Mom?"_

"_No…"

* * *

_

That was one thing I had to keep Elle in the dark about. I didn't want her to get worried that the Order would come. That was my main concern. We got upstairs, and got you settled into the guest room, and I had to fill Elle in.

* * *

"_You're kidding! A seclusion ward? He's not insane! I know he acted a little weird after that night his parents got pissed, and his dad kicked him out, but…"_

"_Exactly. I don't know what they were really doing, but I will find out. In the meantime, Alex has got a load of recovery to do."_

"_No kidding. He looks like someone kicked the crap out of him and then some." Elle crossed her arms and fixed her mother a rivaling stare. "How can his parents do that to him?"_

"_I'm sure they had no idea this was going to happen, Elle. Adam may be thick-headed, but he's not the type to sell his son away to that place."_

"_Come on… His dad has been the worst." Elle started to head upstairs, to check on the subject of their conversation, and didn't hear her mother's last words._

"_Unfortunately, I know why…"

* * *

_

"Your recovery was slow, but it was sure. All you did was improve, to the point to where you were walking around, talking, and were almost back to your old self. The problem was that your father paid me a visit one day, expecting me to be alone."

"_Adam?"_

"_I want a word."_

"_Alright… What's this about?"_

"_Like you don't know." He stepped into the living room, choosing to stand, rather than sit. Movement upstairs caused his head to jerk to the balcony. "Who's up there?"_

"_Elle. Now, what was this visit about?"_

"_You went to see Alex, didn't you?" It was almost an accusation._

"_Yes. I see you haven't. Why Is that?"_

"_I can't bring myself to see him there." Adam averted his eyes, and Margaret used this moment to her advantage._

"_You're the one who put him there!"_

"_You know I had no choice! After what happened, it was only a matter of time, before they would come looking for him."_

"_Don't even make it sound like you did it to protect him!"_

"_Why are you so invested in this?" Adam's tone was venomous, now, and he pinned Margaret with an icy glare. "Of all people, you should know how it is to choose-"_

"_I know, but I didn't cause Nora pain, did I? You want to know why I'm so invested in this? Finee, follow me."

* * *

_

"I took your father upstairs, knowing you were asleep, and opened the door. He was damned furious, but when I made him look at you, really look, his whole attitude changed. He was still pissed, but there was something of an understanding there. He hadn't expected to see bruises, burns, and various other injuries. He expected you in a straight jacket, muttering something about how you didn't kill Joshua."

"_What the-"_

"_Take a good look, Adam. When I first got there, he was so jumped up on meds that he wouldn't feel the pain he was in, but it was clear that he knew his body's limits. He didn't move for the first few days."_

"_What do you mean didn't move?"_

"_I mean he sat stone still, staring at nothing, until his body was ready for him to move again. Normally, he wouldn't struggle with the 'treatment', but on the last few days, he did. They had to 'rough him up' to get him still. After his treatment, on the final day, he resisted, tearng the IV out of his arm, causing the drugs to wear off."_

"_And?"_

"_And he became aware of everything! The pain hit him like a brick wall, and he was suddenly very aware of what was gong on."_

"_So you busted him out? Don't you know how dangerous this is? If the Order knew…"_

"_They probably already do! Adam, you have to ask yourself, what's best?"_

"_What the hell are you talking about? I put him there to protect him FROM them, not-"_

"_Look at this, then. I subpoenaed their records, and by a miracle, I had an old friend working over there. By now he'll have fled the region, but these are his hospital records."_

"_Looks like a log of hhow much pain he could take in a day.."_

"_There's more. They've been using electroshock therapy on him, which wouldn't surprise me, if they weren't going way past the legal limit."_

"_Past the legal-" He continued reading, seeing that they had indeed exceeded the legal voltage limit. Continuing down the page, there was no note of progress, but the doctor in charge, Dr. Copen, was still wanting to increase voltage. "God-damnit, I took him there to be safe, not to see how far they could push him…"

* * *

_

"Looking through the records, and knowing what I do now about the Order's methods, It'd be safe to say that the hospital is a front for the order's tests on how far they can push a human being. Your father realized this too, sooner than I, but it was too late…"

* * *

"_Mom? Mom!" Elle rushed into the living room, to find hermother out cold on the floor. She had just gotten back from helping Wheeler with some flyers for missing people, and had heard that there was something wrong. There was quite a bit of noise coming from upstairs, and after checking on her mother, she headed up. The door to Alex's room was ajar, and from inside, she heard muffled screaming. There were two people standing, and someone, presumably Alex, on the bed. Elle saw the shadows on the wall behind them. _

"_Shut him up! We've got to get him out of here before the one downstairs wakes. You know how dire it is to get this kid back. We're not ready."_

"_Shut up! If anyone hears, it'll foil everything! Just whack him over the head, so we can-"_

"_Shh! We're not alone!" One of the figures dove at the door, not allowing Elle time to move, and pulled it open. "You can't be here!"_

_Elle dove moved quickly, getting down the stairs, and the man, in a mining outfit, dashed after her. He took the rusted pipe in his hand, and proceeded to swing at her. The other man came, pulling Alex behind him, and Elle was happy to see him still struggling. The one trying to restrain him slammed his fist into Alex's skull, causing Alex to go limp. Elle soon realized there was nowhere to run._

"_Gotcha!" The man chasing her swung and hit her in the head, knocking her down and out._

"_Let's go!"

* * *

_

"They took you away… Presumably back to the hospital. They barred anyone from seeing you, even your father."

Alex continued to stare in amazement at this tale. His memories of the hospital were vague, but part of the dream he had been having, about seeing people doing things, and then Josh in the nightmarish otherworld hospital came back. "Wait, I think I remember being brought back in… I remember in a nightmare I had that I was being brought back into a hospital, restrained to a bed, and I kept asking where I was. The doctor wouldn't answer…"

"I remember you talking about the nightmare to Elle. I remember you saying that there were points in the dream where you saw people doing things to others."

"Yeah… That was the strange thing. Now that I think about it, my nightmare was showing me what happened to Joey, Scarlet, and Nora…"

"After they took you, it took awhile to get my head clear…"

* * *

_Sitting up, Margaret looked around. Th living room was a mess, furniture knocked over, portraits hanging by a nail on the wall, but the most obvious thing out of place was Elle. She was lying on her back, out cold. Through dizziness, Margaret made her way over to her daughter._

"_Elle… Elle? Elle!" Shaking her did no good. Elle's head lolled back and forth, with no sign of consciousness. Putting her back down, Margaret slowly pulled herself up, feeling increasingly dizzy, she held onto the wall. Making her way to the staircase, she saw that Alex's door was wide open. "No…"_

_Heading up the stairs, she went to the door and looked inside. The room was a mess. The bed was in shambles, and what struck her was some blood on the sheets. They had managed to clean him up considerably, but there were some sensitive wounds on his back, wounds that could be ripped open very quickly. Alex had begun to recover, started talking fully again, and was even speaking with his father. "That will all have happened for nothing… They've got him now."

* * *

_


	12. Amnion

**Burned  
**_Chapter 12: Amnion_

**A/N:** Sorry it took so long. I was sidetracked by a small project, another story, called "_Momma"_ Just a short thing about Travis finding Helen in the real world. Anyway, here's chapter 12. Enjoy!

* * *

"So you're saying that I was brought back, only to be taken away by the Order?"

"Yes." Margaret paused for a second. "Oddly enough, I remember all that. Elle really doesn't." Her voice was somewhat strained. It was like the mention of Elle was suddenly an effort. "Just as well… If she remembers anything, she hasn't spoken about it, which is odd. Normally, she raises questions about things that don't really add up."

"Yeah…" Alex was still trying to take in everything she had just told him, but decided to set it aside for later. "We've got to get out of here. They're trying to flood this place."

"Good idea."

The double doors ahead were a little less daunting, after all he had heard, and Alex pulled them open. The room ahead was open, with giant metal rings in the floor. Alex groaned, having seen the symbol before. It was on the case that held the ceremonial dagger below town hall. He remembered staring at it for the longest time, trying to make sense of it. He had also seen it in the prison, after his mother had died. In the room with the three riddles. It had been engraved into the floor. These two rings looked like they could be turned, which he then mentally kicked himself for thinking, due to the control piece just to his left.

"What do you make of this?"

"It's the symbol of our faith… If I'm correct, the symbols have to be aligned in the right way for the second lock to be able to be worked. It's there, on the door."

Alex looked around the room, seeing for pillars, with tablet writing on them. He examined them closely.

_We, the Family Fitch, in order to ensure our continued protection and prosperity, do enter into this Holy Contract with our God, accept our duties as Performer of Rites and willingly consign our child to the knife in God's name._

"Scarlet…"

_We, the Family Bartlett, in order to ensure our continued protection and prosperity, do enter into this Holy Contract with our God, accept our duties as Executor of Law and willingly consign our child to the earth in God's name._

"Joey."

_We, the Family Holloway, in order to ensure our continued protection and prosperity, do enter into this Holy Contract with our God, accept our duties as Keeper of Lore and willingly consign our child to the noose in God's name._

"Nora…"

The last one he really didn't have to look at. He had a good idea of what it said. Moving back to the control piece, he looked at the different symbols. Without a word, Margaret turned the inner ring. It moved slowly, but only one space over. Alex gave her a questioning look.

"It's supposed to be turned there, but I don't remember the outer ring's position. Once it's right, the piece won't move anymore."

Alex growned inwardly, but began turning the outer ring. He would pause for a few seconds between each turn to see if it was correct. However, as it happened the ring had to be turned almost completely all the way around again. Once it clicked, the light above went out, and the door lock was illuminated. This one, Margaret took care of.

"I remember this one. In my darkest dreams, I see this door, and just beyond it is Nora, but because of the lock, I couldn't reach her in time…" As the door swung open, Alex saw the symbol on the floor again. It was there that he saw what looked like four tombstones, each bearing the founders' family crests.

"What is this, a sacrificial chamber?"

"That's exactly what it is…"

He stepped forward, getting to the centre of the room. He could see the four name plates on the altars, and one caught his eye. It was his.

"So it really is true then… I was the chosen one…" His eyes rested on the engraved name, and his head spun. He was in his bedroom, then on the lake. Jushua was pulling at the chain the ring was on, and then he was gone, sinking down to the bottom of the lake.

"Josh…"

In the midst of his flashback, Alex didn't hear the all too familiar siren. It blared, and it took Margaret calling his name for him to look up. The four altars were sinking into the ground, and the floor around them as well as the walls were peeling away, like rotten flesh. This left the room barren with grated floors and walls. Alex had definitely seen this before. His attention was on the ceiling, which was darkened. There was something there though.

"What the hell…" The question came a little too late. With what felt like the weight o the world on his shoulders, Alex turned slowly. He had sensed movement. A gasp from Margaret told him he was right. Now facing him, was something that made his blood run cold. At first glance, it looked like a spider. Its many legs weren't normal though. They were robotic. The body of it looked like a waterlogged human being. Its skin swollen and pale. It was somehow attached to the metallic apparatus, as though it needed the metal skeleton to stay alive.

He didn't have much time to think, though. The creature lunged at him, jabbing one of its sharp front legs into Alex's shoulder. He winced with pain as his body jerked in defense. The sharp end came out, bringing blood and skin with it. Removing the laser pistol and fumbling with it, he took a few wild shots, missing spectacularly, and had to roll and duck for cover. The spider-like thing began screeching in what was a half human-half animalistic cry. Then a black thick substance spewed from its open mouth, causing Ale's skin to burn and his lungs to work overtime so he could breathe.

Continuing to roll and dodge, he felt like there was no escaping the beast. _There has to be something to these monsters… What do they mean? How do they just materialize right out of thin air? _ Once the toxin was out of the air around him, Alex began taking more shots at it. Each time the legs were hit, it was like there was no damage. One of his frenzied shots hit the underbelly, and that rattled the creature. It reared up, slamming the two pincer-like front legs down on the ground, in an attempt to hit him. However when this happened, the monster became stuck. Alex took this two seconds to fire directly at the soft underbelly. It didn't do much damage, but it somewhat slowed the thing down.

Getting too close, the thing dragged its front metallic leg across Alex' chest, causing a large angry cut. Blood began leaking out, all over him, but it didn't phase him. Taking one more calculated shot, the beast got angrier, getting up on its back legs now. Instead of trying to crsh him and coming back down, the spider-like thing stayed upright, swiping at him occasionally, while again, spewing it's black poison. The large gash in his chest slowed Alex down considerably, and he fiddled in his pocket for one of the bitter tasting health drinks. Popping the top, he drained the contents of the can, suppressing the gag reflex, and continued running, feeling the herbal mixture beginning to lessen the fiery pain. He took a few more hit-and-miss shots, mostly missing, and tried to dodge one of the blade-like legs. It didn't work. Instead, the sharp point drilled into Alex' abdomen, causing him to fall backwards from the force.

Since his first injury, Margaret had been moving around the monster, keeping out of sight, and readying herself for the worst. It was almost clear what this monster was supposed to represent.

* * *

_The room was filled with sound, Wheeler struggling to get away from some unseen creature, Alex calling his name, and then Alex calling her name_

"_Go! Get out! I'll save Wheeler!"_

_She was rooted to the spot, seeing the disfigured monster emerging from the rotten wall. It looked like a being on top of another being in a position to crush the life out of the latter's windpipe. It took Alex shaking her for Margeret to come back to reality._

"_Please! I don't want to lose you too! Go! Find Elle!" As she left, she kept watching him. The thing moved toward him , and was able to take a few pot shots. Alex finally conquered it by leaping onto its back and wrapping his arms around its throat, strangling it._

_It was crystal clear. That thing was meant for her.

* * *

_

This creature reminded her of a spider, and from recent memory, Joshua's favourite insect was a spider. The bloated and waterlogged form at the center of the beast was a complete giveaway. Her attention was then shifted back to Ale, who had fallen to the ground, with the spike for a leg still in his stomach. She quickly darted under the beast, withdrawing the ceremonial dagger as she went, and slammed it into the creature's heart, forcing it down, through the stomach, and out the other side. The creature screamed and writhed in pain, at the same time, releasing something from the balloon-like stomach. Then, the beast fell back, legs retracting close to its body in a fetal position.

Ignoring the thing the creature had deposited, she moved to Alex, removing the serum from his tattered jacket pocket. Remembering where the first-aid kid was, she used the serum so as to dull the pain.

"I know you must hate the thought of shooting this up into your system, but its for your own good…"

Once his breathing became less labored, she gently turned him slightly to get to his back pocket, where the crushed first aid kit was. Throwing out the small bandages, she clawed at the gauze and antiseptic, which under normal circumstances would sting like hell, but it seemed Alex was so out of it, he didn't really notice.

"Hang in there…"


	13. Drown Part I

**Burned  
**_Chapter 13: Drown_

**A/N:** On a roll, people. I'm working on chapter 13! This is the farthest I've gone on any of my 32 stories! (Please hold in your excitement) lol. Here's chapter 13 It contains a song. Had to change it up. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** Don't own the song.

* * *

A sea of pain was what he felt. The feeling of struggling against water was all that he knew. This was no ordinary water, though. It felt like acid against his skin, salt in an open wound, or ice on sweat-soaked skin. Seeing nothing but what looked like the vaulted ceiling of the last place he remembered being in, Alex couldn't move. His body was immobilized, and whatever kept him afloat was beyond his understanding. The space above him was black, making him think he wasn't a part of the living world anymore.

* * *

_Good morning day  
Sorry I'm not there  
But all my favourite friends  
Vanished in the air  
It's hard to fly when you can't even run  
Once I had the world, but now I've got no one

* * *

_

Nothing, that was all that was left. Alex saw nothing, and as far as he knew, there was nothing left. Elle was gone, Wheeler, Adam, Lillian… He had no clue as to what happened to Margaret. That was the only uncomfortable thought. She had been in the room with him, but now he was alone.

* * *

Elle reached the grate at the top of the mine shaft, having to pull herself up on rotting wood and mold-covered rocks. The shaft was poorly maintained, leaving her and Wheeler to really tough it out.

"Wheeler, the grate's stuck. It feels like there's an inch or more of rust keeping it shut. Any ideas?" She looked down, seeing him resting momentarily on a rock ledge. "You ok?"

"Peachy. Hang on, I've got a combat knife here somewhere. If I remember anything about my old shitty job, it's that there's a release lever on these damned grates. If it's rusted, then we're screwed, but it's worth a shot." He clambered up to her, pulling a beat up but sharp knife from his breast pocket. "This should at least scrape somethin'. The lever should be on the far left side on the top. If you can get the knife through the grate, then maybe you can trip it."

"Great. Here goes…" She sounded exasperated, but ready to try anything to get out of the rathole. She scraped the knife against the rust, causing a horrible sound, but finally found the lever that Wheeler had mentioned.

"It's not wanting to move…"

Grip the knife handle, and pull back against the lever. Try pulling it near the top. The base is probably too rusted to want to move."

"Got it."

Elle pulled the lever's top, finally making it snap to the other side, releasing the grate. She started to pull herself up, seeing nothing but mist and smoke outside. "Hang on, Wheeler." Continuing to free herself from the black hole that was the underground, she saw where she was. The beat up and unkempt front of Alchemilla Hospital was almost directly in front of her. She slowly knelt, reaching down for Wheeler. He pulled himself up to the point where his head was above ground. Elle helped him the rest of the way.

"Shit, didn't think I'd ever say I was happy to see the upside of this place." Wheeler easily sat down on the pavement, looking around. He then pulled out his radio, seeing how beat up it was. "Hmm… It should still work. Alex, you there?"

* * *

Feeling almost helpless, Margaret applied pressure to Alex' wound, making sure the gauze stayed in place. Her eyes flitted to the chest wound, which was still bleeding, but not nearly as bad. Her eyes then traveled to his face, which held a frozen expression. It was mixed, pain, surprise, and fear. His eyes were wide open, revealing swiveling eyeballs, trying to make sense of what he was seeing. She had no idea of what that was, but she nearly jumped out of her skin, hearing Wheeler's voice. The source was unknown, but soon she saw the radio lying about half way across the room. Retrieving it, Margaret noticed it was badly damaged, and was one way communication only.

* * *

Getting no answer, Wheeler groaned. Elle shot him a worried look. He slowly pulled himself back up, looking around. "According to my not so great memory of this dump, the way back to the lake is that way." He indicated the left.

"What do you think happened to them?"

Elle had voiced the question that Wheeler himself didn't want to think about. What all the order was capable of was anyone's guess. He had barely thought about the men in mining suits, when a swarm of them exited the church behind them. Elle whirled 'round, only to see them headed the other way, toward 'Old Silent Hill'.

"What the-"

"They flooded their lair. What else have they got to do but run back to their little safe house?" Wheeler looked back at his radio. "Alex, Margaret, is anyone there? Are you all ok?" His voice had gotten forceful now, It was like formality had gone to the dogs, and the survival instinct had taken over. He needed to know whether to leave without them, or wait.

* * *

Alex felt himself being weighted down, not by his clothes, but something else. Josh's face kept coming at him out of the dark haze, and right after that, his father's angry expression. This was expected, though. All that had happened with Josh, generally meant punishment for Alex. He then was swallowed up by some blurry scene that soon solidified.

* * *

_The store was darker, some of the lights going out. It was about to close. Alex stood at the entrance, looking at some hunting knives on display. Josh was in back, looking at a bow and arrow set. He had had his eye on it for awhile. It was a model, not the real thing. Alex groaned in slight impatience as Josh dragged his feet leaving. He didn't even notice the bulge under Josh's sweatshirt jacket. They made their way home, Alex headed for the bathroom to take a shower, before going to meet Elle outside Town Hall. Josh went into their bedroom, pulling out a box from his front pocket of his sweatshirt. Placing the wooden box under his bed, Alex didn't bother looking in his direction, while pulling his shirt off._

"_Josh, I'm getting a shower. If Mom or Dad ask, I'm going to meet Elle Holloway outside Town Hall. We've got some studying to do, Ok?"_

"_Ok, Alex. Check it out!" He indicated the box under his bunk. Alex turned, his eyes widening. "Cool, huh?"_

"_NO! No Josh, that's not! How could you do that?"_

"_Come on, I thought you'd think I was cool!"_

"_Cool for doing what?"_

_The boys looked up, seeing their father. Adam had come from the den down the hall, and was now looking into his sons' room. "What happened, son?"_

_Alex froze. The calling him 'son' meant that there was probably something bad coming. He had no time to recover, because Adam crossed into the room, pulling out the box from under the bunk. "Alex?"_

"_Dad, I didn't know… He was looking at it and-"_

"_And what, you failed to notice he stuck it in his pocket!" He motioned for Alex to follow him. Feeling like he didn't want to be in another world of trouble, Alex followed. They went into the den, where Adam cornered him._

"_You have to be more responsible! You are a big brother! Joshua is your responsibility! When I'm not around, it's on you!"_

_Alex couldn't believe what he was hearing. Joshua had stolen, and he, Alex was getting in trouble. Adam gripped his son's shoulders. "You don't get it, do you? You have to grow up!"

* * *

_

This memory was one of the more vivid. Alex felt his father's iron grip, and he heard the raw anger in his voice.. The whole point of this memory was apparently to prove that his life had been unfair. That was all Alex had ever gotten out of it. He was now still struggling, slightly letting up on his struggling.

* * *

If I needed someone to control me  
If I needed someone to hold me down  
I would change my direction  
And save myself before I

* * *

His grip was slightly loosened, by the dream-like state. He was remembering thngs more vividly, not needing to reach back so far into the back of his mind… He then just slipped further into the blackness. This allowed him to see a whole slur of memories, some he hadn't quite tried to remember.

* * *

"_Alex?"_

"_I'm sorry to bother you so late Judge Holloway, but do you mind if I borrow your couch tonignt? My dad and I got into it-"_

"_Say no more, come in. Elle's already asleep, though."_

"_That's fine…" She stepped aside, allowing him entry. He placed a bundle of clothes on the end of the couch, looking back at her. "You didn't have to do this… I'm probably more trouble than I'm worth…" Margaret crossed the room, sitting beside him._

"_What happened this time?"_

"_The usual… Josh did something, and I got in trouble. He stole from a store, and I didn't notice, so I got in trouble for not stopping him…"_

_Alex let his head fall into his hands, and there was a wave of fatigue washing over him. The thought of just shedding the 'burden' of watching after Josh was what he wanted. He felt her arm go around his slim shoulders. Her hand rested on his shoulder. Alex took comfort in this, because any contact with someone was more than he'd ever gotten with his own parents._

"_I feel like I'm drowning…"

* * *

_

**A/N 2:** This chapter is only part I. There's more to come with this.


	14. Drown Part II Nightmares

**Burned  
**_Chapter 14: Drown Part II - Nightmares_

**A/N:** This chapter is a bridge from the last. More than likely there will be another in Chapter 15. Same song.

**Disclaimer:** Still don't own the song…

* * *

_That night was spent hearing his father repeatedly scream at him. It was almost always the same, 'You have to grow up!', 'Assume responsibility!', and so on. The statement about him feeling like he was drowning was true. Alex felt suppressed, and the weight of his parents' neglect weighed on him. His conversation with Margaret had been productive. Alex had let out a lot of pent up anger and frustration. He thought he could sleep easily, but apparently, life had a way of proving him wrong._

"_I just can't go home only to be ignored… Going home isn't something I've ever looked forward to. Mom and dad were always cold, not just after Josh was born, but the whole time… Is there something wrong with me?"_

"_Nothing's wrong with you, Alex." Her tone was almost resigned, but there was an air of concern mixed with pity. "This has nothing to do with what you've done…"_

_She had bade him goodnight, and he fell back against the arm of the couch. Many a night had he spent on this couch, and it was weird. Alex felt more at home here than anywhere. It wasn't long, though that he kept hearing his father's lecture in his head…

* * *

_

Vaguely, Alex heard someone calling him, begging him to ooen his eyes, but the sound was distorted, like it was coming from far off. The voice was vaguely familiar, but because of the distortion, it wasn't clear. He felt himself reaching out, trying to grasp whoever it was talking to him, but to no avail. In reality, he wasn't moving at all. He remained still, his eyes moving rapidly, and his arms still on the rusted floor.

"Alex… don't-"

"Anyone there!" Elle's voice broke through the still silence. There was hardly anything Margaret could do about it, though. The switch that allowed communication back was nearly completely broken off. Still, she had to say something, anything. Maybe some sliver of what she was saying would go through. Holding the broken switch down with one of her nails, she steadied her breathing.

"Elle… Elle?"

"Thank God… Where are you? What's going on?"

Her voice was slightly broken up, but it was still something. Looking back to Alex, Margaret held the switch again.

"In bad shape. Alex isn't responding… Did you get out?"

"We're out. We m*n*ged to get u* through the m*n* vent. How b*d is he?"

"Out of it… He's completely unresponsive."

* * *

Elle finally had gotten a response. She and Wheeler listened, hearing that Alex was out of action for now. Elle closed communication, and turned to Wheeler.

"What do we do now? They're trapped down there…"

"We don't know that, besides if we go back down there, we'll all get killed. All we can do is wait for him to come out of whatever mess he's in."

Though he had a point, Elle felt worry building up. She thought about the order, remembering them heading in the opposite direction. "Why do you think they'd just flood the place? Then, why would they just run away, ignoring the people who escaped?"

"Well, the mentality is that when a bunch of whackos loses the upper hand, they either do one of two things, one, fight like hell to try to get back the upper hand, or two, run after they realize they've been screwed." Wheeler crossed his arms. "Seeing as they tried to kill us all, all they've got left is to run like the coward bastards they are."

"Weird…"

"What else have they got to do? They just blew their entire operation. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if everybody in Shepherd's Glen was involved."

"Mom was…" Elle paused, thinking. "So was Curtis… All the founding families must have been."

"How's that make you feel, knowin' that the founders were involved in this shit and didn't bother letting people they were close to know why?"

"Thanks…" Elle frowned at his sarcasm, but it had some merit.

* * *

"Goddamnit…" Margaret was getting gfrustrated. The water was lapping at the door, like the tide coming in. Alex was still out of it, and the connection with Elle may not last long. "Come back, Alex…"

* * *

"_What?"_

"_Come back here later. I've got a feeling you won't want to go home tonight."_

_Alex had been about to leave for the library with Elle, and turned back._

"_Why?"_

"_Your father has a tough meeting with some associates of the Overlook Penitentiary up in Silent Hill. I can tell you that it won't be pretty."_

"_Thanks for the tip. We'll see you in about two hours, then."_

_They had been gone for an hour and a half, when Adam came bursting through the door, telling Alex to come with him._

"_Dad…"_

"_Now."_

"_What could I have possibly been doing to annoy you?"_

"_Watch your tone!" Adam shook Alex violently, then pinned him against the low wall. "I don't want to hear of you avoiding coming home or avoiding your responsibility again, do I make myself clear?"_

"_I'm not. I wanted things to cool down before I came home, but I can see now that that ISN'T going to happen!" Alex shrugged his father off, and left, heading back inside the library._

"_Turning your back means you're nothing but a failure!"_

"_You're the one who's the failure." Adam clenched his fists, getting angrier by the second, but he had to walk off. Wheeler was calling him in for an interrogation that should have happened two hours ago.

* * *

_

_If I needed someone to control me  
If I needed someone to push me around  
I would change my direction  
And save myself before I drown

* * *

_

Alex' eyes finally focused, moving down from the ceiling. He was lying on the floor of the rusty otherworld version of the Order's lair. Hearing someone else breathing, he slowly turned his head.

"Hey…" Hearing his voice himself, he noted that he barely had one. It was raspy and broken, but it was enough.

"Shit Alex, you scared me…"

Margaret moved toward him, dropping down to her knees to look over him. The wound in his abdomen was not bleeding as bad anymore. The gauze was so flooded that the blood was being pushed back into his wound. This was speeding up the clotting. The wound in the chest was alright. Alex slowly reached out, feeling like his arm was made of lead, and placed his hand over hers.

"You ok…"

"How wrong is this? You just got trumped by that thing," she pointed to the Spider-human, "and you're asking if I'm ok, after you come out of a semi-coma…"

"Well… when you put it that way." A faint smile appeared on his face. She looked over him again, noticing him attempting to sit up.

"You sure that's a good idea?"

"Sounds like Toluca Lake on a bad night, out there. If I'm right, this rust bucket won't hold up for long…"

"Good point." She watched him sit up, wincing slightly, and he looked around.

"Josh…"

For the first time, Margaret took a good look at the person/thing on the floor, where the monster had dropped it. It was rather disturbing to see Joshua Shepherd lying on the floor, cold, pale, and dead. Helping Alex to his feet, they moved toward the boy.

"Josh… I'm-" He stopped, seeing the almost triumphant look on Josh's face, frozen from when he successfully pulled the ring's chain out of Alex' hand. "God forgive me…" He looked down, feeling a whirlwind of emotion. "I still feel like I'm only second best to him… Even now."

"It's not hard to think, Alex." Margaret steadied him, making sure he wouldn't fall, "He was always the one they wanted to spare, their miracle. If it had been the other way around, it probably would be you lying there…"

"I guess I'll never move on from this… This nightmare will plague me. I'll always see him looking at me from the surface of the lake, when I close my eyes… I'll always see myself struggling with some unnamed demon…"

"That demon has a name now, Alex. Your anger, contempt, frustration, and need for answers… They all combined and formed this angry part of you. Hopefully, it's resolved now."

* * *

_Good morning day  
Sorry you're not here  
All those times before  
We're never this unclear_  
_It's hard to walk when you can't even crawl  
Once I had this world, but now I've lost it all

* * *

_

"I feel like I don't have a purpose now… All this time, I've been focused on finding my brother, keeping him out of danger, and finding anwers… Now I have them, but I lost my brother. What have I got to do now? Am I meant to just take this flooding grief and confusion? Should I just let go and let it consume me?"

"No. That's the last thing you should do. You've got a life, a destiny, and nothing stopping you now."

"Nothing but my nightmares…"

* * *

**A/N 2:** Part III is coming soon. Thanks for reading!


	15. Drown Part III Escape

**Burned  
**_Chapter 15: Drown Part III_

**A/N:** Here's the last part to this chapter, I think. Thanks for keeping up!

**Disclaimer:** Still don't own the song…

* * *

This statement couldn't have been more true. This whole thing had been what seemed like a nightmare. His homecoming, Bartlett's death, Fitch's death, the memories of the founders' children, Joey, Scarlet, Nora, and now Josh. Alex stared down at his brother, seeing the look still on his face, and got angry again. Margaret headed him off.

"Alex, don't…"

"How can I not? He was the star of the family, and I was pushed to the side!" Using his voice caused his lungs to expand more, ripping open the wound in his chest. This caused him to nearly fall over. The pain made him dizzy. Seeing the room spin, it took all the restraint Alex had to feel his feet firm on the ground.

"Feeling angry now will do nothing for you. It will only cause you more pain." She kept her hand around his arm, keeping him standing. They both turned at the loud moan from the doors behind them. "Looks like you were right…"

Water was already leaking below the door, and the floor became more of a bloody color. Alex grimaced, straightening up.

"Then we're running out of time…"

* * *

Elle watched the fog, building and dissipating. She couldn't get over what all had just happened. They had been taken from the boat, through the prison, and into the lair of the Order. She had been told by her mother that Nora had been killed to protect the family, and that someone in Elle's future life was to do the same.

* * *

"_How can you expect me to even consider doing something that stupid? Would God really demand that!"_

"_You will have to understand, Elle. It is an ancient pact that was made to protect Shepherd's Glen. You, as a descendant will be expected to uphold-"_

"_Fuck this whole horrible tradition! I won't kill anyone, least of all, my own family! If you're ok with that, then good for you! How do you sleep at night, Mom?"_

"_I don't."_

_Curtis had brought her in, tied her up, and left to intercept Alex. Elle glared at her mother. "What the hell is Curtis involved for? He your go-getter, now? Is that how peope have been disappearing? Were YOU behind all this?"_

"_We did what had to be dnoe to survive."

* * *

_

Elle shook herself, thinking about survival. She didn't hear Wheeler talking, until he called her name. "Elle, Alex is awake. Hopefully, they'll get up here soon, so we can leave this place."

"Alex is awake?" She had half-heard him. Wheeler nodded, handing over the radio.

"Alex?"

"Elle… You ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. We got out, and are in front of Alchemilla. Any idea on how you're making it out of there?"

"Not yet… Doesn't look like there's a way. Water's coming in now."

Static was coming over the frequency, and it was probably due to the underground. Elle frowned. "Surely they wouldn't just have a dead end." The next voice she heard was her mother's.

"This is the sacrificial chamber. They had to build a way out, whether it's through the ducts that circulate air through this place, or maybe even… wait, Alex… Don't."

"What's he doing?"

No answer. Static had completely obscured communication. Elle slammed her fist on the ground. "Damnit!"

* * *

"We've got to find a way out, and it looks like our main way is now blocked by water! What do you expect me to do?"

"You can't overexert yourself. That won't do anything good. Look, there has to be a way. The Order isn't stupid."

"No, and that's what I'm counting on." He prepared to slam his elbow into what looked like rotten wall. The only thing that stopped him was the tearing of his abdominal wound. Alex screamed, dropping to his knees, and eventually falling to the floor, on his side.

"Alex!"

"Get… the… wall."

Hard pressed to ignore Alex' injury, Margaret examined the wall, where Alex was now balled up in the floor. The surface was soft, definitely rotten, and was easy to cut. Removing the dagger again, Margaret embedded it into the rotten flesh-like wall, forcing it down. A nasty tear appeared, leaving a gaping ominous hole.

"I need your flashlight…"

Alex rolled over on his back, and slowly pulled the flashlight away from himself. His wound was dripping blood again.

"Here…"

"We'll need to change that. It's going to hurt."

"Shit…" He was now breathing in short gasps, trying to contain his pain. It wasn't working. Searching for the medkit that had been useful before, she pulled out the remaining gauze and a cover bandage. Alex stifled a scream as she gently lifted the old gauze.

Once the wound was cleaned again, and the entire thing bandaged up, she took the flashlight off the floor, and looked through the hole. "Oh fuck…"

"W-what? Don't tell me… stairs."

"Worse… ladder."

"There's… no way I'm… getting up that thing."

She ducked back out, helping him back up. He doubled over, gritting his teeth, but eventually pulled himself back into an upright position. "How In the hell are we getting out of here if I can't…" He thought for a minute. "You'll have to go alone…"

"Like hell."

"We both know I'm not getting up that ladder…. Elle needs you. I'm the reason all this shit happened…"

"Actually, I think Elle'd rather kill me right now, especially if you didn't come back."

Alex thought about this for a few inutes. She was probably right. _Knowing what Elle does now, I'm sure she's pissed, but it's nowhere near how it was with my parents. Here I thought they hated me… I don't know what Elle'd be thinking right about now… Be thankful she still has her mother… That thing, Asphyxia, could have finished her off, or worse… I could have killed her…_

Remembering that particular black-out vision, Alex shivered. This didn't go unnoticed.

"What is it?"

"Just thinking… about the drill. That would have ended badly."

"Yeah…"

"No, I mean I would have killed you. Wanting to survive, I would have forced that thing back into your skull. As if I haven't caused you all enough pain already."

The grief quickly overtook him, all the things that had happened, Jush's death, Bartlett's, Fitch's, his parents', and almost Wheeler and Elle's. The founders lived in misery, because he had overreacted, causing Josh to fall over the side of the canoe. Now, he was either going to die down there, leaving Elle to want to stone her mother, or both of them would die down there. Neither were acceptable, but there was no other solution.

"I feel like I'm drowning, flailing in all this grief, and there's nothing I can do to fix it…."

"Don't think that way. Grief is like a hydra. The more you block it out, the more it builds, causing more pain. Go at it at the source."

"If I only knew what that was…"

"It's a mind game. Face your fears and accept that things happened, and act on what you know has to be done, even if it seems impossible. Meaning, we've got to get up that ladder. Regardless of wounds or not. You can make it, but it will take accepting your limitations, first."

"You're serious?"

"Yes. You said you didn't want to cause any more pain, then don't. Show everyone that you will overcome anything. That's what your father thought you could never do, isn't it?"

"Yeah." His voice was slightly stronger now. The look on his face was mixed, though. It was hard to tell whether it was mixed with determination, or pain. He slowly slipped through the rotten hole, looking up at the rusted and aged ladder. It seemed endless, though. "You really think I can do this…"

"Whether I do or not, you'll have to. I've done all I can do, now. It's all up to you. Live, or drown." She crossed the distance between them, looking dead at him. Alex felt the blood in him begin to boil at the closeness. Remembering earlier in the room where he had been held, Alex felt his arms wrap around her waist. Noting that she didn't protest, he rested his hands at the small of her back.

"How is it that you know exactly what to say to make things more clear? It's always been a talent of yours."

"Loads of practice." Her arms snaked upward, wrapping around his neck. Oddly enough, Elle was on his mind, but that thought was driven away. Standing like that, both of them jumped, when the iron doors sealing them in burst open, flooding the room with blooded, rusty, and frigid water. Alex shivered.

"We've got to get out of here. I'm not drowning in that swill."

"Good man, you first."

"What?"

"Insurance. You go, so that if anything happens, you'll get out."

"Now who's talking negatively?" His joke earned him a slight smile, which turned into a grimace. "Huh?"

"Body parts in the water…"

"Yeah, we're leaving."

Alex gripped the ladder, carefully keeping his limbs in short reach of his body, so as not to stretch the wounds inflicted by the thing, Amnion. Continuing up, he heard the water rushing below them, lapping at the sides of the rotting alcove, and making the ladder slightly move. His hand nearly slipped from a limb on the ladder that had rusted and snapped in two. Carefully stepping over it, he looked over his shoulder.

"Watch that one. It's snapped in two."

"Yeah. Saw that…" Her teeth were gritted. Looking down at her, he saw a large cut in the base of her hand.

"Ouch."

"Yeah."

Three to four minutes later, they reached something hard. Alex looked back and then put his hands against the flat surface. He pushed, feeling water slowly leaking from the other side.

"Oh shit…"

"What?"

"Water on the other side too…" He pushed what felt like a manhole cover to the side. Water poured all over him, falling past and getting all over Margaret. Alex then went further, pulling himself up, but hit his head on what felt like an open grate. Praying that his hand wouldn't slip, he pounded his right fist on the bottom side, allowing the thin meshy grate to spring up. As it went up, something cold and hard came down. It hit Alex in the shoulder, and he managed to say "look out!" quick enough so that Margaret could flatten herself to the ladder. The thing fell past her.

"What the hell was that?"

"Don't know. Almost out."

Pulling himself the remainder of the way out, he saw the east wing of the church. Getting himself over the top of the pit he was in, he recognizes it as the baptismal pit. He reached down, taking Margaret's wrist, and pulled her up as well. She stared around, seeing the halo of the sun on the wall. Looking to Alex she saw a look of relief and fear.

"What is it?"

He walked back down the stairs, turned to the left, and had to lean against the wall. "It's about my Mom…."

"Where is she?"

"In the prison, ripped apart." He pressed on, getting up to the top of the steps. Finding a way to get past the destroyed doorway was something. He got down, slowly pulling himself through the crawlspace, and sat back, looking at the corpse of his father, hanging in the doorway opposite the entrance to the church. Margaret followed soon after, stopping dead at the site of Adam.

"Oh no…"

"He's dead too." Alex voice was hollow. He looked from his father to the door. He then looked around, seeing all the pews upturned and in ruins. "What a waste…"

"Come on…" He followed her to the doors, which had been blocked by barbed wire, but then it looked like the Order had cut it. It was hanging lopsidedly from either side of the doors, like it had been stretched to its limit, and had sprang apart. They slowly pushed the oak doors open, seeing misty skies and feeling cinders in the air. Alex thought about the hellish Otherworld courtyard between the prison and church. He saw a drawing lying in the middle of the street. Slowly leaning over, he saw a picture of a tall man, presumably his father, holding a boy down under what appeared to be water. The boy was labeled 'Alex'. He took the drawing in both hands, ripping it apart.

"Destiny can be re-written."

* * *

**A/N 2:** Sorry this took so long. Not much action in this ne, though. May be in next chapter. Thanks for readng!


	16. Hollow Reunion

**Burned  
**_Chapter 16: Hollow Reunion_

**A/N:** This chapter kind of backtracks from the last communication with Elle and Wheeler. It shows their side of what has been going on since they lost contact with Alex.

**Disclaimer:** I still own nothing.

* * *

Wheeler grinned at Elle's was now cursing under her breath about her hand, which she had slammed onto the pavement.

"Calm down. I'm sure things are good."

"Yeah right. Alex is known to do stupid shit when bad things happen…"

"Don't I know it. He took on that monster that had spare hands and shit after it got me. What he did to it, I ain't got a clue."

"Then there's trusting my mother."

"Let it go, Elle."

"I can't! She was willing to kill her kid! My kid sister!"

"Yeah, but hey, if it's what has to be done so Shepherd's Glen don't end up like this place, I'd do it."

"You would?" Her skepticism was through the roof. Wheeler groaned. "Thought so."

"All I'm saying is that it's not beyond the realm of understanding. The mayor and Fitch did it."

"Yeah. Mayor Bartlett turned out to be a full fledged drunk afterwards, and apparently, Doctor Fitch cut himself. Wonderful."

"Come on… Your mother suffers too."

"No, she lives a normal life, while Nora's rolling over in her damned grave."

"You hear that?" Wheeler pulled out a small handgun from his belt. The static in his radio was starting to get louder. "Something's comin'."

"Over there…."Elle pointed. A silhouette of a dog, or some four-legged creature was coming toward them from the fog. Wheeler aimed his pistol at it, but it had already seen them, and was running.

"Shit." Wheeler fired on it, causing its body to fall back, but that didn't stop it. The feral started toward them again, this time, limping.

"What the hell is that?"

"I've seen them before. Actually, I plowed one with my patrol car." Wheeler continued to fire at it, until it made a dull whimpering noise, falling over. Moving away from the grate they had climbed out of, Elle found a small building that looked like a rundown shack now. She forced the door open, and motioned Wheeler inside.

"We'll be safe here, for now." Looking up, she saw an examining room style light. Upon further inspection, she saw the small office. It was a private office of a Doctor John Copen. The filing cabinet was open, and rifling through the records, she came across Alex' name. "Wheeler, look at this."

"What is it?"

"Some kind of medical file with Alex' name on it. It mentions something about progress with… electroshock therapy." Looking through it, she saw his treatment schedule. "Man, they fried his brain every other day…"

"Didn't your mother go see him sometimes?"

"Yeah… She'd go once, maybe twice a week. She went more often when Nora disapp… died." This brought back the anger she had felt toward her mother. Wheeler waited for the onslaught of angry words.

"God, how does she live with herself? I mean, who in their right mind could just kill their kid?"

"We've already been through this. I think she suffers too, Elle. Have you seen how tired she always seems to be?"

"Yeah, but is that really suffering?"

"Do you not call insomnia torture? I mean, imagine not being able to get your beauty sleep."

"Come on, there's a pill for that now."

"True, but why sleep, when your thoughts and dreams are plagued?"

"It'd drive her mad, if they were."

He just sat back, listening to her tirade now. There was no point in arguing, so he just let it go in one ear and out the other, until she asked one question.

"Why do you think she's so close to Alex?"

"Huh?"

"Didn't you see them? He was practically defending her."

"Yeah, and apparently there's reason."

"What reason?"

"I don't know. We'll have to wait for them to find that out." He sat back against an old desk, scratching his arm. The place he was clawing at was slightly burned. "Damn, this itches."

"Scratching it will make it worse." Elle was thumbing a particular scratch that looked like it had been bad when it happened. The skin around it was frayed. Wheeler raised a questioning eyebrow. "Me and the chainsaw got a little too acquainted."

"Oh. Curtis get the better of you?"

"Something like that. There was something else on his mind, though. That's what I think, anyway. The way he talked was just…."

"Yeah." Wheeler had started to think of Elle as something of a daughter, or somewhere in that general area, since this whole thing had started. When Margaret had bailed, spending her time drowning in paperwork, Elle'd do some stuff for Wheeler, that way, she'd have somewhere else to go than home. He hated that this had happened, but he understood why. Like with the other parents, the children's deaths had taken a toll on Margaret. He had suspected that she hadn't been sleeping, when she forgot what day it was.

* * *

"_Hey, you're late."_

"_Huh? It's Friday, right?"_

"_No… It's Wednesday. Friday was about four days ago. You look rough."_

"_Thanks, just what every woman wants to hear."_

"_Sorry, just givin' it to you straight. Everything goin' alright with Elle? She's been a little distracted, lately."_

"_I don't see her anymore."_

_Her eyes had been threatening to fall closed then. Had a car not passed them, she would have closed them, giving in to tiredness. Wheeler just shook his head._

"_Get some rest, you look like you could use a week."_

"_I wish it was that easy…"

* * *

_

Elle was still reading Alex' file. The paperwork suggested that they had overdone the electroshock therapy's voltage, and that it brought good results, but in the report made by the orderly, that was shoved back into the back, there was no improvement listed, until they had stopped therapy, due to the machine breaking down.

Hearing some noise outside, the two dimmed their radio volume, so that the static would be quieter, hopefully not drawing the beasts to them. Another feral was growling and sniffing around the corpse of the earlier one. Elle leaned against the wall, using the street light outside to read the paperwork. She was halfway through the file, when she saw that Alex had been removed from the hospital.

"Do you remember this? Alex was taken from the hospital… by my mother!"

"What now?" Wheeler now looked over her shoulder, seeing the signature. "Damn… How is this possible? I don't remember him ever being back until now."

"I don't know… This Is just getting weird." She read further, seeing a re-admittance. "Look, he's back in Copen's care, here."

"Man, what the hell is goin' on? You don't remember any of this?"

"No. You'd think I 'd remember him being back before now. I was kind of mad at him, when I first saw him at the bulletin board."

"I was pretty suspicious too. He started sayin' Mayor Bartlett was at some rathole hotel in Silent Hill."

"Yeah… When he said we needed to go there, I was a little concerned." She put the folder down, having finished all the reports. "Something's going on."

"Yeah, and I know I can be a little paranoid, but I smell a cover-up."

"No kidding… Where do you think they'll come out?"

"I don't know. Hell, the Order probably made several different escape routes. They could come up from the floorboards." This caused her to laugh. Wheeler knew how to make that happen. She slowly got up, looking out the window. The feral had gone, leaving the corpse of the first one. There was more bone exposed, from the other creature eating the muscle. She edged the door open, looking out. "Wheeler, the door to the church is opening again."

"Hang on." He got up, joining her. They both looked around the corner, seeing the doors opening. Not waiting, Wheeler pulled the pistol again. He made sure there were still some bullets there. Cocking it, he saw one shadow stiffen. "That got their attention."

The two shapes got a little clearer, as they headed out of the church's doors. One a man, the other a woman. Elle strained, and she finally made out the sound of heels. "Mom."

The two in the office stepped out. Alex was about to tell them who they were, when another feral leapt out of nowhere, landing on Elle. It knocked her to the ground, biting and clawing at her face.

"Elle!" Wheeler readied his pistol, then thought better of it. He gripped the dog-like creature, trying to crush the life out of it. It almost backfired, but Wheeler pivoted, causing himself pain, and slammed the thing into the crumbling brick of the office behind him. It whimpered, like the first, and fell silent and still.

"Elle!" Alex' voice could be heard from near the church, and both of them came as fast as possible, with Alex' injuries. Her face was a mess of blood and skin, some torn, some just irritated. Wheeler looked from the two arrivals to the hospital across the street.

"You think they'd have some stuff that's still good in there?"

"Hell if I know, but we can't stay here." Alex hadn't bothered to kneel, looking at Elle from his regular height. "This place is crawling with those feral, and there are other things, too. I ran into them in the church."

"He's right. We're not safe here."

"Yeah. I hope that place has some medical supplies that aren't rotten." Wheeler picked Elle up from the ground, and was surprised to hear a dull whimper from her. He then proveeded across the street. The two recent escapees looked at each other, before following.

Inside the main lobby, they saw that nobody was in reception, and that the place looked like it was covered in an inch of dust, or more. The map was still lying on the table as a welcome gesture, but there was no sign of anyone there. Wheeler moved to the stairs. "Nothin' for us here. There ain't a soul in sight." He pulled the door open, revealing a flight of carpeted steps. Alex thought about his nightmare. The stairs had been rusty and barren. Oddly enough, the dream finally caught up with him, as he entered the second floor corridor. Some of the doors were jammed shut. Trying other doors, he finally found one that was unlocked, but it was open, like someone was supposed to be coming back. Alex froze, seeing the room number. A faded 205 was staring back at him. Seeing him stop, Wheeler looked up, after placing Elle on the bed. "Something wrong?"

"I…" He kept his mouth shut. Looking around, he saw claw marks on the glass in the window frame.

* * *

"_LET ME THE HELL OUT OF HERE! I want to go HOME!" Alex attempted to claw his way out, not feeling the hot friction between his fingers and the glass. He finally felt the pain, when his fingers broke through, and he dragged them downward, hoping to tear the pane apart. A nurse came in, trying to calm him down, but he wasn't responsive._

"_I want to get out! LET ME GO!" Fighting off the nurse, a doctor came into the room, holding a long syringe. He ordered the nurse to hold him still. For the second that Alex was still, the doctor plowed the needle into Alex' forearm, cauding a relaxer to go straight into the bloodstream. He screamed in protest, but nothing could be done about it. The two medics left him, curled up and fingers bleeding on the bed.

* * *

_

He felt a hand on his shoulder when he opened his eyes again. The vivid memory was still repeating in his mind, and his own angry and desperate voice was ringing in his ears. He barely heard Margaret calling him out of it.

"Alex…"

He stepped out of the room, and sat down on the bench outside. She and Wheeler exchanged looks, but they both looked over Elle, slowly bandaging the left side of her face with a medkit that Wheeler had found in a supply shelf. The entire left side of her face was marred with blood, torn skin, and swelling. Thankfully, the animal hadn't come in contact with her eye, but it came close. She started moving, and Wheeler had to hold her down, so that they could seal tehe bandages. Afterwards, she looked around, not seeing Alex, and turned to her mother. "Where…"

"He's outside. Something about this room…" It hit her then. She remembered catching the room's number. It had been 205, but she didn't understand the marks on the glass. It had always been dark when she was there. They had kept the lights off, saying that he had been easily angered, when he could see where he was. This was the first time she had seen the marks. Then, looking at the bed, she saw what looked like a bloody handprint in the far corner, between it and the wall. Thoughts on the two didn't connect, until Alex had gathered himself and come into the room.

"It was mine… I did it after I cut my fingers on the glass." The three looked up at him, then looked to the two places, the window, and the wall. Elle was first to speak.

"Thought you'd done something stupid and left us…"

"Can't get rid of me trhat easily." He said this and smiled for her sake, but it didn't reach his eyes. They were a rather dull shade of blue right now. He crossed the room, staring around the four walls. "So many bad memories came from this room, but there were a few good ones too." He looked to Margaret at this point. "I guess that I was just plain lost here, though."

He sat down in the chair that had been occupied many nights, while he was here. It was odd, though. He could still see himself entangled in the straight jacket, sitting there with a lost look on his face. Shaking his head, he looked to the ceiling. The light had been basically disconnected, so that it wouldn't turn on, unless the wire was re-attached. He motioned for Wheeler to turn the switch off. When he did, Alex slowly re-attached the wire, and secured the fixture. When the switch was up and on, the light completely illuminated the room, showing all the traces of Alex being there.

On the night table, there was still a picture of him, Lillian, and Adam. They had been picnicking on the shore of Toluca lake. He wasn't the happiest in the picture, but his mother was. She and Adam were standing there, happy with each other. To the left of that picture, was one of him at one of Nora's last birthdays. Josh had had the flu, so he had to stay home, and Lillian knew how close Alex was to the Holloways, so she let him go, against Adam's wishes. They were at the lake as well, Nora in the middle, surrounded by Elle and Alex, with Margaret in back. They had all been laughing in the picture. Alex forgot who had actually taken that particular one. He knew that Wheeler had taken the one with his parents, because he had been down there wipng down the police boat. Elle caught his gaze.

"Not so happy, huh?"

"No, not really. Mom and Dad were though. I didn't want to ruin it for them. I made myself look happy for them." He thought about it for a moment. "Come to think of it, that's one of the only pictures that are left of me and them… They took all the others down, after I was taken away. This is all I have left of them, aside from a house full of bad memories."


	17. Bridges Crossed

**Burned  
**_Chapter 17: Bridges Crossed_

**A/N: **Took a little while to update this one, but I'm getting back to it. This chapter was particularly hard to write, since I thought the last one ended well. Hard to pick up when there isn't a cliffie. Lol

* * *

Feeling their eyes on him, Alex continued. "Now that Dad and Mom are both gone, I don't know what to do. The house is mine by default, but I don't think I want it… How could I live there when all I got was the feeling that I was never wanted?"

"Good point." Elle was trying to read his face, but there were too many emotions conflicting to tell. Wheeler looked all around, seeing just what Adam had meant when he had said Alex was "gone".

_Adam said he was, and man was he being truthful. From the looks of this dump, Alex had no clue what he was doing, or where he was while he was here. How does someone make such a recovery?_

Lost in his thoughts, Wheeler didn't hear Alex' next statement. Thankfully, Elle hadn't heard either, so he repeated it.

"I feel like I shouldn't be here… I feel like maybe I should have been killed or never born…"

"And why would you say that?" Elle looked at him with an almost unsettling expression.

"Let's see, one, I was ignored growing up, two, my dad said he would kill me when it came time, and three, all I do now is cause people pain." He had an edge to his voice, and it was threatening to turn into an angry tone. His eyes flared, looking like they were smoldering. This got everyone's attention.

"Come on, you know why your dad did that."

"I know. Still, I hate that I wasn't ever noticed. It was like it was assumed that I didn't exist. Hell, my father said it himself. He said when he was given a second son, the first might as well have been a stranger in his house."

"When did he say that?" This statement had piqued Margaret's interest. She was leaning against what looked to be a rotting bookshelf full of dusty old medical journals.

"When I was in the church, I saw a guy in the confessional. He started talking, and I heard my dad. I got pissed at him when he said that. He was asking for forgiveness."

"And you masqueraded as a priest?"

"Yeah. "When he started talking, I just let him go."

"And what was your decision?"

"I forgave him…"

"Why the hell would you do that?" Elle said this with renewed anger. "All that happened, and you forgave him? What did he say?"

"He said something like he felt something or someone pressing down on his lungs, forcing him to struggle with every decision. I told him that wasn't God, but his conscience."

"Man…" Wheeler looked at Alex. "Sounds a little cold, huh?"

"Cold is being shut out of your own family. I was just giving him the facts." Alex looked at the three, who all tended to agree with him. "He said something about wanting to explain himself when the time comes. I guess that got to me…"

"I know you want to hate him, but there is something inside you that agrees with what he's done. He did all that he could to protect his family, as we all did, but you were the ultimate price for him." Margaret stood a little straighter, looking at him now. Alex just shook his head.

"If I was the ultimate price, then why did he have no problem signing my life away for all this? It failed anyway. If I had been killed, what then? The Shepherd family would have died out, so would the Fitches and the Bartletts. They were all on their last limbs. This shit would have happened anyway."

"True."

The room was silent for about fifteen minutes, then Elle sat up. Still looking like crap, she gave Alex a stare that would rival her mother's.

"We've got to get the hell out of here. This place is falling apart, and we are sitting ducks, while we just sit here."

"Where do we go now? Shepherd's Glen is shot to hell, and I ain't stayin' in this roach motel." Wheeler spoke up after really considering things. Alex looked out the fogged up window. The sun was setting, causing the world to go dark around them.

"You don't think they still have a boat that floats, do you?"

"Maybe. Hell, they should have our boat. They took us from it."

"So, we've got to get to it. I'm not stayin' in this hospital longer than I have to."

Nodding, Elle got up. She swayed dangerously, until Alex caught her. Making their way to the door, Elle looked back. "You two coming?"

The adults shrugged, looking at each other, and followed. Going past the operating theatre, Alex looked through the open doors, seeing the bed he had been strapped to in his nightmare. He started questioning that nightmare now. Was he really here, haunted by his brother and that damned rabbit toy?

"Weird."

"What, that you're leaving this dump on your own, rather than being medically cleared?" Elle joked, causing him to smile. This time it did reach his eyes. _She really hasn't changed… _ He looked at the exit sign over the stairs, and let out a small sigh.

"Sort of. I never thought I'd be here. When all this shit started, I was thinking I was in the Army, discharged because I was wounded in battle, and really I was so high on meds that I probably didn't know my own name, much less what I was supposed to be here for."

He was walking a little carefully, keeping his own injuries in mind, though they weren't throbbing or pulsing anymore. Moving the wrong way was still not an option. Getting down the stairs, he headed for the exit, seeing a map on the bulletin board. Knowing that he didn't need it, he brushed past it. The adults, on the other hand, saw something that didn't make sense. The map was warped, like there was no way out of the hospital, though the exit was right in front of them. It showed a mirror hospital on the other side of the door. Thinking nothing of it, they left.

Seeing the foggy streets and the closed down buildings, the four kept heading back toward the lake, where they would hopefully find the police boat. Alex wasn't looking forward to going home, but he was used to seeing it, rather than the eerie streets of a forbidden and condemned town. Though Shepherd's Glen was not in the best of shape, with the downfall of the order, there was some hope of returning to normal.

_Normal… What the hell is normal? How am I supposed to get back to a normal life, when I guess it wasn't normal to begin with… What about the founders' responsibilities? The families are dying out, aside from mine and Elle's. Oh man…_

They had reached the entrance to Dargento Cemetery, and all of them crossed the planks that served as a bridge. The crack in the road was wide, but the boards were steady enough. The car still had its headlights blazing which was odd.

"You'd think the battery would be dead, by now."

"Maybe time stopped here, like it did back home. All the clocks were stopped at exactly 2:06. Did you two notice this?" Wheeler looked from one Holloway to the other. Elle shook her head, but her mother nodded.

"I noticed, but thought nothing of it at the time. When time didn't move forward for a day or so, that was when the founding families got together and discussed our options. That was when Adam took you here, Alex."

"Still, I don't get why he did."

"He didn't want to lose you."

"Nice way of showing it."

"Really." Elle looked around, seeing a hole in the wall. "There's the way out. The bridge leading out of this hellhole is… well…" They all looked over the barrier, seeing a whole lot of nothing. The bridge, like the road outside the Grand Hotel was just gone.

"Yeah, we're not goin' that way." Wheeler ducked down and went through the hole, cursing when he pulled a healing wound. Alex made sure Elle and Margaret got through, before ducking under it himself. He too pulled something, but didn't say anything. The rickety wooden ladder and dock areas were not the easiest to cross, because they had to jump across two areas where the wood had rotted out. Wheeler went first, followed by Elle, then Margaret, and finally Alex. This happened twice, and finally, they descended the stairway to the shore, where two boats were waiting. One was too rusted out to even float, hence the water in the cabin, and the other was the police boat. Wheeler crossed his arms.

"Guess which crate we're takin' out of here."


	18. And Burned

**Burned  
**_Chapter 18: And Burned_

**A/N:** This is just about it, people. I'm almost done with this, I think. There may be references from this story in my others, but nothing major. I know there are going to be in the sequel to She's Not Here. Haven't got that posted, but it's coming soon. Anyway, enough of my ranting. Enjoy the beginning of the end!

* * *

The choice was obvious, and they all knew it. The police boat was the only way out. Alex remembered seeing his father on this boat, holding Josh's corpse, getting angry at him. Shaking this image out of his head, they boarded. The order had been aboard, because the weapons locker was raided. It was standing open, with the lock clearly jimmied. The helm was vacant, so Wheeler entered and fired the engine up. His sights were set on Shepherd's Glen, while the others were just hoping to get out of the area. Elle and Alex remained on the outside deck, while Margaret joined Wheeler. They spoke in hushed voices, but the other two ignored them.

"Elle, I….

"There's nothing to say. I hate how I flew off the handle earlier. I should be thankful I still have my mother. Hell, she could have been taken, just like the others."

"Yeah… I don't know if I would do anything differently now… I'd hate to have to leave here with my parents. Imagine the awkwardness. We barely know each other anymore. All I know is that they both said they wanted the best for me, and if that was being locked away here, rather than facing the Order, I guess I can accept that."

"Yeah. Mom was trying to shield me from this crap too… I guess it took nearly losing her to see that. I mean, how was she supposed to tell me about Nora? 'Hey, Elle, your sister's dead. I strangled her to protect you.' Seriously."

Alex laughed, feeling his ribs protest, but ignored them. "Yeah. That would be a conversation I'd pay to hear."

"Oh shut up." She play slapped him, and he grinned. "Like you'd really pay to see who'd win between me and Mom."

"In an argument, I would. Catfight, definitely not."

"Thought so." She looked back at Silent Hill, seeing the grey Smokey fog envelope it. The Order and all its nonsense was behind them now. Wheeler looked out from the cabin.

"You two good?"

"Yeah. How long we got?" Alex sat back, leaning against the railing.

"A while. The Order jammed up the speeds on this thing. Now we're goin' about minimum speed."

"Wow."

"Yeah. We'll get back in maybe half an hour." Wheeler headed back into the cabin, sitting down on a bench. Alex turned back to Elle.

"So, what are you goin' to do? You going to stick around, or head out?"

"I don't know… There's nothing really left, is there?"

"No. There isn't."

"What are you planning, Alex?"

"No clue. Like I said, I don't have anything left at home. There's nothing left for me, so I'm really considering leaving."

"Well, I hope something changes your mind."

"Why?"

"Living in Shepherd's Glen is all that I have known, and it's all you know. I want you here. I need you."

"I-"

"DAMN!"

Looking up, they saw the smoke billowing out of the cabin door. Wheeler was pulling out the emergency extinguisher, spraying the area around the helm.

"Man, can't ONE thing go RIGHT!" He pulled the hydrant back, spraying everywhere, trying to put out the white hot flames.

"Cut the power!" Margaret shouted this, while Wheeler did so. The height of the flames died down slightly, and he attempted to control them again. Alex moved forward, throwing open the cabin door. Met with more oxygen, the flames flared again, burning his face. Falling back, he was met with Elle's calling his name. Wheeler kept spraying, keeping the amount of foam in mind, and finally got one corner contained. Now, the smoke was still floating in the air, and there were still flames jetting out from somewhere, but the smoke was blinding the two adults. Alex got up, throwing himself back into the cabin, and felt around in the pitch black smoke, finally feeling Wheeler's shoulder.

"Wheeler!"

"Get out of here! We've got to jump!"

"How do you expect to do that, when you can't even find the door!" He slowly felt around, seeing the flashing of the flames, and touched the power switch. "Jammed?"

"Yeah. Power can't be completely shut off! Like I said, this place is a furnace, waiting to happen!"

"Breathing this shit will kill you faster! Alex, get Elle, and jump!"

The entire cabin was black now, with smoke billowing out onto the deck, where Elle couldn't see anything either. The boat started stalling, and it rocked dangerously. Feeling a panic attack coming, Alex saw the flames spike again, climbing to the roof of the cabin. The emergency sprinklers started working, but they only made it worse. The fuel was apparently waking from somewhere. The water spread it, causing the flames to spread throughout the cabin.

"FUCK!" Wheeler shouted this, as he felt the flames climbing up his pant leg. Feeling a hand grip his shoulder, Wheeler was jerked out of the cabin, followed by Margaret. They both fell back onto the deck, and Wheeler rolled around, putting out the flames on his leg. Elle knelt down, checking the two, and Alex leapt out of the rising flames, shutting the steel door behind him.

"Okay, we've got to get off this boat now! It's goin' down."

"Yeah, well how are we going to get off, if we can't see? We're in the center of this crate, and-"

There was a sudden shaking of the boat, and Alex felt around, feeling a guard rail. "Come on! Over here! We've got to get off now!"

"Hang on!" Elle was closest to the cabin, along with the adults. Alex darted back, gripping the wrist of one of them, and lifting them up. Feeling the slender wrist, he figured he had Judge Holloway. Holding her over the side, he looked her in the eye.

"Swim."

He dropped her into the water, and hearing it shift, he knew she was following his advice. Turning back, he felt the ship lurch, and the cabin door flew open. The helm exploded, gas finally igniting, and Elle and Wheeler were thrown overboard. Alex felt the icy water hit his back, and began to quickly flail about in the water, anything to keep himself afloat.

"Wheeler! Elle-" He went under, feeling the sweeping current taking him. The cold water against his lungs made them protest even more, while he was in the water. The panic attack he had felt coming on was there full force, now. Alex realized with horror that he hadn't really been taught to swim. Kicking his feet and moving his arms, he felt himself slowly rising. When his head resurfaced, Alex looked around. He saw land not too far away. It would take a little while to get there, but he thought it was reachable. Feeling someone beside him, he saw Judge Holloway treading water near him. She said nothing, but looked around, in search of Elle and Wheeler. Their search didn't come up with anything. As far as they could tell, they were the only ones up and fighting against the dead cold water.

Alex' chest was aching now, faced with the panic, exertion, and his wounds. The cold didn't help either, but the fire behind them was slowly climbing, making the shore even brighter. He saw two other boats, one being the emergency boat they kept docked, in case the police boat didn't want to start. The other was a small boat that Mayor Bartlett had owned. He would float out on the lake from time to time, just looking out and occasionally fishing. Both boats got closer, and eventually, Alex dragged himself half way onto the shore, collapsing, with his head down in the water.

His eyes opened, and almost instantly closed, as the bright cloudy sky met him. His back was soaked, and so was the rest of him, but he felt almost numb to the cold. The sound of his voice surprised him as he called out. The words were exactly as they had been the last time.

"Wheeler, Elle, Judge Holloway…" Feeble though it was, it was an attempt at contact. Feeling a shift beside him, he turned. The latter was lying next to him, soaked to the skin just as he, but the others were nowhere to be seen. Looking her over, he saw the dark ash from the fire had stained her clothes, and the water was all over them. It too, carried the black remains of their escape.

"Shit…"

Looking out over the lake as he pulled his still protesting body up, he saw the boat still smoking out on the water. There was no longer a plumb of fire going up into the sky, but a layer of smoke floated around it. Slightly shaking, Alex looked over the shore, for anything that looked like Elle or Wheeler, but again, there was nothing. The water was mostly calm, with a slight pull and push to it, but there was no sound of struggling people.

_I need you…_ Elle's words echoed in his head, and it killed him that he hadn't thought of a response. He had started to say something, when he had noticed the smoke.

_What the hell could I have said to her? What is the right response to something like that? How stupid did I look when she said that?_ These thoughts plagued him for a few minutes. All he could see was Elle's silhouette in all the smoke, and then nothing. He had been thrown overboard from the explosion. Having heard more splashes in the water, he could only assume that they had fallen overboard too.

"I'm here… You're gone…" Feeling a hand on his shoulder, Alex turned to his right. Margaret had sat up, looking out over the lake, and it looked like the truth was sinking in for her too.

"Elle…"

Defeated though it sounded, her voice had about the same strength as his. He could tell she had suffered smoke inhalation more than he had, though. Ale scanned the shore again, seeing nothing, and looked to her.

"I'm sorry…" His words felt almost like a poison coming from him. Here he was thinking about himself and how he felt about Elle's death, when the woman beside him had lost everything. He still had her, but her children were gone. Nora had died because of the damned ritual, and now Elle had died because she had come with him to Silent Hill. The same could be said for Wheeler. "I should have gone alone… That way none of this would have happened."

Slowly pulling himself up, he stood, not knowing how long that would last, due to his legs being damned sore and numb to boot. He couldn't feel his foot against the ground, but he knew it was. Extending his hand, Margaret took it, and he lifted her up into a standing position. They looked back at the boat, seeing the fire still blazing, and Alex had to think about the possibility that Elle was still on it.

"You don't think…" She voiced his fears. "They couldn't be on the deck…"

"I know I saw them being thrown overboard. I was the last one off." Alex said this stiffly, thinking that he hadn't seen it, but he had heard two large splashes, presumably them being cast off the deck. "Should have-"

"Don't." She placed a hand against his face. Alex looked directly in her eyes, seeing what looked like defeat. "There's no reason to blame yourself. If you hadn't acted so quickly, you might have washed up on this shore alone…"

Her words took a few minutes to register, but after they had clicked, he realized she was right. He would have three people to mourn, instead of two. At least she was there with him.

"I'm sorry…"

"That bridge has already been burned, literally."


	19. Haunting Shadows

**Burned  
**_Chapter 19: Haunting Shadows

* * *

  
_

She indicated the boat that had been sinking a little since last night. Now only the cabin was above water. "We'll never know now, whether they made it off, or not."

"How is that supposed to make either me or you feel better?"

"It doesn't. It's closure, in a way. Whether they made it off or not, they're apparently d-dead now."

He had to give her credit there. Being able to say that with a straight face was apparently all she had. Alex looked back toward Shepherd's Glen, seeing the lake path's gate standing open. Apparently, they had run off so fast, they forgot to shut it. Scanning the shore one last time, he saw nothing, and it was literally painful for him to turn away from the water. "There's nothing left for us here. You don't think they'd want us to freeze to death, do you?"

"Probably not."

The walk back up to the street was quiet. Neither knew what to say to each other. The losses of friends and family were on both their minds, and it didn't help that there was nothing in Shepherd's Glen that could take their minds off it. Everything was either founder oriented, or they saw the police car that Wheeler had left at the head of the path. Exiting back onto Craven Avenue, they saw the Shepherds' house on the corner. Debating on where to go, they settled for it.

"Mine's on the other side of town."

"Yeah. I don't think my body would agree with me going all that way, especially since we have to go through Rose Heights…"

"Good point. You alright with this?"

"Yeah. I'll live with it. Hell, I lived there for years, and it was like I didn't exist."

Narrowing her eyes, Margaret looked to the house, seeing the door standing open. She looked back at Alex. He just shrugged, and started walking. Reaching the gate, Alex could just see Elle standing there, with a somewhat relieved look on her face, but he had to quickly clear his head. Looking at the gate again, he saw nothing there. Sighing, he headed up the path and onto the porch. The door was still standing open from where he had escaped the otherworld version of his home. Now, the walls and floor were as they should have been, and there was no more rust, blood, or barriers blocking the attic, kitchen, basement, or his old bedroom. Alex stepped into the doorway, instantly reminded of when he arrived earlier. Not a soul was around. He looked to the chair in the living room, seeing it empty in front of the window.

"God…" His voice carried through the still house. Nothing moved, there was no sound, other than the two of them, and everywhere he turned, he saw shadows of his parents' existence.

"What is it?"

"When I came here earlier today, my mother was sitting in that chair with a gun in her hand. She would barely speak to me…. I later found out the gun wouldn't fire, but still… the image of her like that… What happened to her?"

"It was guilt." She came to stand beside him, eyeing the chair as well. Oddly enough, she hadn't seen Lillian in this state. "She started slipping when Joshua died. Realizing that he was the center of Adam's world, she saw just what he was doing. Adam had given Josh the life you could have had, right in front of you. Adam gave her the story that he was just dealing with the fact that you were the chosen one."

"But it was more than that…"

"It was much more than that. Adam was not just dealing with your loss, but he was building a wall between himself and you. Lillian found this out the hard way, when he planned to shut you out of his life."

"Hell, he did that a long time ago." Alex sat down on the couch that he and Josh had hid their comic books under. He kept looking at the chair, as if expecting it to just either vanish, or for his mother to just rise from it like this was a cruel dream.

"Unfortunately, Lillian caught on too late. She had gone along with Adam, thinking it was best to sacrifice the son they hadn't had a relationship with, and starting new with Josh. She realized that you had reached out for a relationship with her, and that was your last attempt."

"All others ended in failure. That's why I gave up…"

"Understandable." Eying the chair, she noticed the shades were drawn. "Odd that she'd just sit here with the shades drawn shut."

"That's what I found weird too. It was like she was waiting for Dad to come home, but how could she even see him when he came?"

"Maybe that wasn't what she waited for…"

They sat in silence, looking around the room. Alex saw his father's books, his mother's chair, and everything else he didn't want to see. Feeling his chest tighten, the air going into his lungs didn't seem to be making it to his brain. This made him unable to concentrate. Getting up, he moved slowly to the kitchen. Seeing the mountain of dishes in the sink, he turned away. Changing direction, he gripped the banister, heading upstairs. Watching from the doorway leading into the main hallway, Margaret saw the tormented look on his face. She followed at a distance, knowing that he would need his space. Hearing the water running, she looked into the master bedroom, and sighed. He was in the bathroom, throwing cold water on his face, shrinking back as it hit him. Looking up in the mirror, he saw something out of the corner of his eye. The mirror showed a slight view of the bedroom, from where he was standing. Seeing a figure sitting in the rocking chair at the window, he got angry.

Hearing the sound of breaking glass, Margaret looked back into the bathroom, and was almost shocked at what she saw. Alex was now sinking down to the floor, burying his face in his hands, which were dripping with blood. Looking up, she saw why. He had completely ruined the mirror. It was cracked and breaking around places where his fists had come in contact with it. She dropped down beside him, seeing his entire body shaking. He leaned his head against her, needing some form of contact. She lowered his hands, taking them into her own, not caring about the blood leaking from the splintery cuts in his knuckles. Hearing nothing but strangled gasps from him, she said nothing. He would talk in time. He surprised her by speaking just after that thought exited her mind.

"My mother… I'll never be rid of her…" He looked up, his eyes looking murky in the low light. "What do I have to do? Jump off the bridge leading to the Bartlett Vineyard? When will this end?"

She still said nothing, thinking on the very subject. The buzz of laughter was playing at her ears, and she knew deep down that no such thing was occurring. The two responsible for it were either dead or in a broken state beside her. She honestly had nothing to say to him. There were no words that could stop the torment, and there was no action possible that would stop it either. Suicide was a sin, so if he took his own life, he would be punished with the images of his life. That alone would be equal to living with what had happened. At least with the latter, he could die and drift off to sweet blackness. That way, there would be order to his world again, rather than a twisted version of chaos.

Feeling her skin against his, Alex felt a sense of stability. This was how he had always felt around the Holloways. Something about them was always right. His family was always hectic and wishy-washy. When he was around the Holloway women, he knew there was no sudden change in feelings as far as he was concerned. This was the steadiest feeling he would have. His feet were on the ground, but he still had some balance to regain, whereas when he was at home with his family, it was like there was no solid steady ground. It was always shifting, like the tides. Her there beside him was like the ocean hardened, forming into solid ice. That way he could get his bearings, but there was just enough instability to where he could slip up. She was doing her part, and it was time he did his. Moving his right hand, he placed it over hers, causing her to look up at him. Instantly, he saw a change in her expression. There was something troubling her.

"Something wrong, aside from the obvious?" He said this in a slightly rough voice. Feeling the tightness in his chest going down, he was losing it as he went along. "You look awful."

"It's probably nothing…" She looked away from him, seeing his eyes boring holes into hers. It was a piercing look that she couldn't avoid, if seeing it. "I'm probably just dealing with lack of sleep. I don't know the last good sleep I had."

"Bull. This has hardly anything to do with insomnia. Maybe a little, but I think there's something else." He waited, thinking back to the events of earlier. Drawing a blank, he settled for reading her expression. It was a haunted look, much like his own a few minutes ago. "It's Elle, isn't it?"

She didn't answer. Her expression was far off now, and he felt like she wasn't there. Her thoughts had wandered into a whole new plane of existence. She was simply torturing herself, and he had to stop it. Noticing her eyes slowly closing, he shook her. "Huh… What?"

"Come on. You need sleep." It wasn't a request, more so a command. He slowly rose from the floor, taking her with him, and stepped over the shards of mirror on the floor. Moving out of the bathroom, he exited into the hall. No use in sleeping in his parents' room. He kept seeing the shadow of his mother in the rocker. That alone was enough to drive him mad. Looking into his old room, his stomach was instantly turned. Josh's stuff was still there, almost mocking him. He settled for the den at the end of the hall. There was nothing there that would remind him of his parents or Josh in this room. The only thing was the TV. It was still on and showing static. Adjusting one of the dials, he found a newscast. Immediately, the story caught his attention.

"Brahms PD has been called to investigate the disappearance of one of their own up in Silent Hill. Though they did an investigation a few years back, the new chief of police has released a statement saying that the investigation was and I quote, botched and disorganized, with enough of a hole to plow a truck through. He goes on to say that the disappearance of an officer, Cybil Bennett, has been the talk of the town. Now, the police department is sending in a team to search the city for evidence of foul play. We'll bring you the latest on this search, as it becomes available. Back to you Ted."

The two had sat down on the sofa, watching the newscast, and Alex rolled his eyes. "Wheeler said something about her. He said that nobody knew what happened."

"I read about it in the papers…" Her voice was distant, but not in a far off sense. He heard exhaustion in every syllable. "Doesn't surprise me now…" Her head fell back against his shoulder, and Alex had no intention of moving it. She was asleep faster than anything, but he couldn't just drop everything and shut down. Granted, he had slept before this shit had started. According to Elle and Margaret herself, insomnia had been a bitch since long before his return. Now that he thought about it, what kind of homecoming had this been? Had he been away for years, months, weeks, or just days, before all this started happening. The truth was that he didn't know. The last thought he had about the hospital, real or not, was his nightmare in the cab of Travis Grady's truck. Alex shivered thinking about the dirty blade of the great knife cutting through him like he was nothing more than plastic. Shaking it out of his mind, he concentrated on the TV, which had gone out again. Rolling his eyes, he laid his head back, hoping that sleep would soon overtake him.

"We'll get out of here in the morning, and then we can start over."

* * *

As his eyes closed, Alex felt as though he were being lifted from out of his body. It was like he was drowning again, and this time, there wasn't blackness. He was falling into his memories, reliving everything since he returned to Shepherd's Glen. The first was of his mother, sitting there in the chair, and then the walls and floor peeled away, like in the otherworld, and Lillian's skin started to turn and vanish, leaving nothing but bloody bones in her place. When the scenery changed, it was like he was looking up from underwater at his father. Adam was looking down, like he was about to vomit, and suddenly, his body was speared by the same great knife that had killed him in the church. Blood drained, causing Adam's image to be tinged red, like water was mixing with the blood. Not seeing the actual killer, Alex became frustrated. The scenery changed again, now showing him looking down into water. His eyes widened as the bodies of Elle and Wheeler sank down into the blackness. Her hand was outstretched, like she was reaching for him. Alex stretched out his own arm, hoping to catch her, seeing that her eyes were wide open in alertness. Touching her hand felt like razors being dragged across his flesh. Jerking his hand away, he saw a shocked and horrified look on her face as she ran out of air. Wheeler was already gone. His eyes were closed, and his body was further down than Elle. He reached out again, his hand just short of gripping hers. "No…"

His lungs filled with icy water as he uttered this word. It burned him, and he felt he was getting what he deserved, but suddenly, Elle's voice filled his ears. "Alex… Alex? Alex!"

* * *

His eyes snapped open, and he sat bolt upright. Looking around the room, he saw the elder Holloway staring at him with clear concern in her eyes. Roving the room, he saw that it was the den. There was no icy water consuming him, and Elle was nowhere to be seen. Alex couldn't shake the ghostly laughter that had started when Margaret was apparently calling him out of his dream. It was Josh's mocking tone. He noted almost instantly that sweat was slowly seeping into his wounds, causing them to ache.

"What in the world was going through your head?" Her voice was soft, and it wasn't just because of weariness. There was an undertone, along with the usual concern for his wellbeing. Alex just took a minute to take all he had seen in. Why hadn't he seen the executioner's helmet behind his father? Why was it like the space behind his father was obstructed? It dawned on him then. "I'm responsible."

* * *

**A/N 2:** Final chapter coming soon. I had to work with this chapter, plus I was distracted by another fanfic project. Chapter 20 will be it. May include epilogue, if there is room for it. Thanks for reading, and a special thanks to Wolf for following this. I liked the insight throughout my writing this one.


	20. Responsible

**Burned  
**_Chapter 20: Responsible_

**A/N:** This is it, y'all. The last chapter is finally here. I didn't think I'd go through this story and finish it, but hey… More surprising things have happened. Anyway, here's the last chapter. Thanks for reading, and enjoy the finale.

**Disclaimer:** Still nothing.

* * *

It was near three in the morning now. Alex looked around the room, trying to just calm down. He had seen these things, and there was nothing that could be said or done about it. The dream had spoken the truth. He was responsible, directly or indirectly. Margaret had attempted to get it off his mind, but it was unsuccessful. Her worried expression had started to slip, when the fatigue got to her again. He was sitting on the sofa again, with her head against his shoulder. Occasionally, she would wake up, looking over at him, and seeing that he was still awake. This time, she sat up a little, watching him. Alex noted her movement, and looked down. "Something wrong?"

"Odd, because that is what I was going to ask you." She leaned against the back of the sofa, watching him intently. Alex almost squirmed under her gaze. This was one of those rare moments when he forgot that he was 22. His eyes were averted to the ceiling, watching as a ladybug crawled across a support beam. "I'm well aware of your evasive tactics. Don't forget that you learned them from my daughter."

"Right..." He finally looked down, seeing that same gaze still on him. He had always been the victim of this look when he and Adam would get into it during his teen years. Alex sighed heavily. "It was just a reminder of what happened and why it did."

"I know it's more than that." She gave him a pointed look that said as much. He inwardly cursed, knowing that he couldn't avoid her. She knew him too well for that. "Something tells me that it made you consider something you haven't as of yet."

"You're right. It made me realize I'm responsible for all this." He turned slightly, propping his head against the arm of the sofa, trying again to sleep. Just by admitting that, he had removed some of the pressing weight that had stayed on his chest and mind since waking about an hour ago. Giving up for now, Margaret leaned back again, letting her head rest on the top of the sofa. Her sleep had been interrupted frequently, because of vivid dreams, but it felt good to finally be able to just collapse and sleep, without waking every hour, praying for something to just knock her out.

Alex thought better of his position about a quarter of an hour later. He realized his arm would not want to support his head for long, if he went to sleep. He shifted again, propping his feet up on the coffee table in front of him, and looked to his left. "Going to wake up with a hell of a catch in her neck." Carefully slipping his arm behind her head, he moved a little closer, almost enjoying their closeness. He and Elle hadn't gotten this close at all. It seemed like they had pointedly ignored each other, just to avoid the rumor factory that was high school. Now, he wished he had dared to wrap his arm around her at that stupid dance she had convinced him to go to. Never mind her so-called friends, who teased about him not being able to see his own feelings. He had known how he felt about her, but it didn't feel like this. This was a whole other world. His conscience was telling him _Come on, she's old enough to be your mother! You love her daughter! How fucked up is this?_ His mind was telling him a whole different side. _She's dead. What have you got to lose? Nobody knows what you two have been through. You're the only ones around! Kick your conscience to the curb. Nothing is right or wrong or even good or evil. It's like she said, there's only chaos and order. Feels like everything's in order, doesn't it?_ Alex shook himself, simply taking solace in the feeling. It was the only good thing in a sea of bad, right now.

Finally drifting back off, the nightmare did not return. It was like his dream was filled with blackness. He could hardly consider it a dream at all. There was no falling, no drowning, no nothing. The dream was nothing. Waking up, Alex was surprised to see light coming through the window. It was foggy, like the window was not clean. Observing it, he saw about an inch of dust on it. "Man, Mom must have just stopped caring…" His voice was quiet, due to the still form beside him. Noting that there was a look of peace on her face, Alex just sat back, taking in the piece in the moment. Seeing that the TV was still on, he pulled the remote toward him, cutting it off. The screen too had about an inch of dust on it. Feeling a slight shift beside him, he turned. "Morning."

"Good morning yourself. You're looking better than earlier."

"Oh yeah." He paused, remembering his outburst last night. _I'm responsible._ Feeling like there was something to explain about that, he straightened up. "About last night, it was obvious that I had a shitty dream. Well, in that dream, I realized something, and that something is that I am responsible."

"Don't even think that right now." Her voice turned slightly venomous. Alex stiffened. "None of this is your fault. Why would you think this?"

"In the dream, there was no executioner. The man with the pyramid helmet didn't show up. The space behind my father was obscured…" He was ranting. None of this made sense to her, because she hadn't seen it. "Point is that if I hadn't killed Joshua, this shit wouldn't have happened. Elle would still be alive; Doc Fitch, Mayor Bartlett, and my parents would too."

"Yeah, and you would be dead." Her voice hitched on this, and it wasn't unnoticed. "Besides, this would have happened anyway. Sam had no other children. Neither did Martin. If our generation didn't someone else's would."

Alex stood up, stretching, and cursed under his breath when he pulled one of his wounds. His chest in particular hurt like a bitch, and he said as much. Heading down the hall, he entered his room, feeling the air thicken upon opening the door. Seeing all of Josh's stuff and none of is own was not only painful, but irritating. He had felt a slight irritation upon returning home, but now it was worse. Kicking the bathroom door open due to it being jammed, he saw that the shower was still there. Josh had said something about wanting a tub instead, but nothing had been done. Slowly removing the tattered clothes, he stood in the shower, and as he turned the valve, releasing the hot water, it hit him, boiling, and he did nothing to stop it. The water cut at his skin, making the blood and scabbed flesh fall from him. It was both a relieving and excruciating feeling. As he stood there, he felt the water running through his hair. The water then ran down his back, feeling like hot blood washing over him. It reminded him of when Adam was ripped apart. The blood flooded all over him. "I'm responsible…"

In the other room, Margaret thought back to what he had said and how he reacted. This place was a house of horrors for him. Alex had come here, knowing that he wouldn't make it across town, and now he was paying for it. The guilt was eating him alive. Hearing a crashing sound from just beyond the wall, she headed down the hall, seeing his and Josh's door open. Looking in, she saw steam coming from the shower. "Oh no." Slowly entering, she saw him struggling to get up from the floor. His skin was an angry red, and his eyes were clouded. Wrenching the handle on the shower, the water stopped coming, and she pulled the towel off the rod. Feeling his hand gripping her shoulder for support, she straightened up, allowing him to steady himself. Gratefully taking the towel, he wrapped it around his waist, and slowly stepped out onto the rug.

"Hope I didn't scare the hell out of you. Just fell."

"I'd be more inclined to believe that if you didn't look like you just got done with a boiling session." He gave her a look that clearly said 'damn'. Looking around, he headed toward the closet. Removing the boxes around the shelf, he reached and pulled a lever, releasing the closet door. Opening it, he looked on the racks for his clothes, but didn't find them. "Where could they… Right." He saw the suitcases in the corner. "Should have seen this coming."

Opening the suitcases, he saw all his belongings stuffed into them. His clothes, pictures, school records and even awards he had gotten for ROTC. He thought that would get his father's attention. It really hadn't, but seeing all his stuff in a suitcase, like all his parents' stuff, made him think about something. "They were taking this stuff with them… There were no clothes in the closet in their room, and the suitcases were downstairs. Either they were going to take this stuff with them, or…" He couldn't say the last. His mind said it for him. _Or they were locking it all away so that they wouldn't have to see it._ He didn't want to think that, so he pushed it out of his mind. Digging through the suitcase with his clothes, he found another army jacket, dark denim jeans, and a charcoal grey tee shirt.

"You alright?"

He looked up, almost forgetting she was there. Locking eyes with the judge left him feeling more solid. He nodded. "Yeah. I'll manage, why?"

"You mentioned something about getting out of here today, right?"

"Yeah. That alright with you?" She held his gaze for what seemed like five minutes, before looking away.

"Excellent. Nobody left here, anyway." Feeling his hand on her shoulder, she looked up, seeing understanding in his face.

"I know the feeling. There really is nothing left here, is there?" The statement was just that, not a question. She looked to the door.

"I'll grab the car. I assume your father's is in Silent Hill." She headed for the open door, only turning around on the threshold. "I'll be back in a bit."

"Alright." He stopped to think for a few minutes, not wanting her to go alone. "Hold on. I'm coming with you. I don't trust the freaky shit that's been going on."

While he got dressed, Margaret waited outside the door. Looking around the house made her shiver. Not too long ago, she could have heard laughter and reprimanding in the hallways. Now there was an eerie silence. Adam and Lillian hadn't been murdered here, but it seemed like their corpses were right at her back, with rotting hands on her shoulders. The paranoia only increased, while Alex was gone. When he stepped out of the room, shutting the door, it almost made her jump out of her skin.

"Did I scare you? Wasn't my intention."

"No… Just wasn't thinking for a minute…" Shaken as she was, she still held a defiant expression. Alex' mouth slightly turned up at the corners at this. It wasn't a time to be amused, but even in the darkest of times, she still retained that same headstrong attitude that Elle had inherited. They slowly descended the stairs, Alex slowly taking hold of his father's crowbar that he kept in the utility corner, just before the stairs leading to the basement, in the room with the fuses. Exiting the house, Alex made sure he had the family ring, his mother's letter, and everything else he had on him before changing clothes. Walking out the back, through the basement, they looked around the backyard for a few minutes, Alex still seeing shadows of him, Joey, Scarlet, Nora, Elle, and Josh in the tree house. Though he and Elle had gotten too tall, they still snuck up there to get away from Adam when he was in one of his moods.

Kicking the fence door open, they advanced into Rose Heights, feeling the eyes of the dead on them as they moved through its many gates. Having gone through it a few times, Alex knew where to go, so when he entered one of the small rooms, he looked back. "Watch your head. We'll have to go through this hole."

"Right." Ducking under the crumbling rock, they both went on through to the other side. The Founders' Garden was growing closer, and so was the growling noise. Alex recognized it as the brutish feral creature that had attacked Elle. He motioned for her to stay put, and eased himself out of the iron gates, leading to the corridor outside the founders' garden. The feral was eating the remains of another, slowly drooling blood. Alex could hear Elle screaming as the thing mauled her face, and that alone drove him to slam the hooked end of the crowbar into its skull. Hearing the satisfying whimper, he yanked it out, careful to do it so that the blood would spray away from him. Motioning for her to move forward, they headed for the garden, where the mausoleums were. Seeing this, they followed the passage into the next garden without looking at the two stone buildings. Alex was surprised that she didn't look back at her own. Her family had been something she would have died to protect, and now she was shedding them from her. Letting it go for now, they came out of the cemetery, and got back out onto Main Street. Moving forward, they came close to the police station, and Margaret turned to the left, going behind it. Living practically behind Doc Fitch's office, she was a private person, as was most of her family. They had stayed secluded in the back part of the town since the founders established it. The shepherds had been at the forefront, a polar opposite. Eventually getting to the house, they saw that the car was still parked in the drive. Alex watched as she slowly entered the house, but decided to wait. He would give her time alone. She looked like she needed it. He didn't mind the wait though. Feeling slightly tired, he leaned against the car, seeing the old picnic table he and Elle used to turn sideways and pretend it was a barrier to hide behind in war. They would hide, while Nora would search for them, water pistol in hand. Normally, she would be an excellent shot, and get them from the side, causing them to take off running.

* * *

"_No way she got us that easy!" Elle had ducked behind the gutter to avoid a stray shot from Nora. Alex just laughed, having been sprayed fully in the face. Elle hadn't been hit, so she was still in the game. Pointing up, Alex laughed as Nora looked over the upper landing of the house._

"_Surprise!"_

_Elle got a good spray to her face and down her shirt. Alex fell over laughing, as she muttered a swearword under her breath. Gripping her water pistol, she and Nora both proceeded to fire at him, laughing as he rolled behind the car, soaking wet.

* * *

_

This was where he stood; looking down at the place he had sought as shelter. Having heard the shutting of the front door had jogged him from his memory. Looking up, he saw Margaret descending the stairs. She had showered, and was now dressed in a black suit. She saw him looking at her, and gave him a questioning look. "What?"

"Nothing, just thinking about…" He nodded toward the picnic table. A sad smile graced her face, remembering watching her daughters and him chase each other around the yard and ducking behind it. Alex sighed inwardly, knowing that reminders of lost family and friends would keep bugging them until they left. This was on his companion's mind as well, seeing as she moved toward the driver's side of the car. "Sounds good, doesn't it? Thought of leaving this place, I mean."

"Better than anything I've seen or heard in the last twenty-four hours." Slowly getting into the car, they both shut the doors, and she turned the key with a shaky hand, letting the engine roar for a second. As they pulled out of the drive and made their way out of town, the ride was silent. Both were obsessed with their own thoughts at the moment. He was thinking of all the shit he was leaving behind, and she was thinking of the opposite, the memories of her children. There were no cars on the road at this time, which was good for them. Seeing Shepherd's Glen fade away in the rear view, they both were brought back to the present. Alex saw her tense beside him, and that prompted him to break the silence.

"Penny for your thoughts."

"It hurts to leave, but I know it's my only choice. I have to let them go." The hand on the console was shaking as bad as her voice. Alex placed his over it, feeling nothing else he could say would help. They were silent again, for a few minutes. He finally spoke.

"Letting go is the only way. I hate my parents' fate, but I know there is nothing else to do. The same is with Elle and Nora. They will always be with you."

"Unfortunately, that is the problem. I love them, but the permanent reminder of their presence is…"

"Terrifying, I know. That is why I kept this ring. I knew this would be something to overcome, and this ring will be a relative situation, so that you won't be alone in the feeling."

"And you'd do this why?" She looked at him for a split second, seeing honesty in his eyes.

"I know the feeling of being isolated, and I don't want anyone to feel that way." Seeing some traffic ahead, both kept their eyes on the road. Neither paid attention to the other's hand, or at least it didn't seem so. Having bypassed Silent Hill, they were headed to Brahms now. It was far enough away to be shielded from the oddities that went on above it. The only way anyone was involved I Silent Hill's affairs would be for them to go up there. The few cars that were on the highway were headed in the opposite direction, mostly tourists. The license plates were all from out of state. Silence overtook them, and Alex remembered the hitched ride in Travis Grady's cab. After the nightmare, to avoid tension, Travis had turned on the radio. The lyrics of the song played through his head.

* * *

_It started long before me...__  
__I never saw it coming'..._

_The distance, the promise...__  
__A state of isolation..._

_And in my darkest nightmare...__  
__Things that I can't remember..._

_The answer, is drowning, this pain will last forever.

* * *

_

The words struck him as odd now. They had practically spelled out what was to happen, but he didn't know it. The song had been just that, a song. He didn't think of any cryptic meaning. Now he felt like an absolute idiot. How could he not have really listened?

"Alex?" Her voice brought him out of his thoughts, as he looked up. They were approaching some heavy traffic. Inside the city limits, both moved to replace their safety belts. Thinking it was rather stupid, seeing as he had just cheated death mere hours ago, Alex did it without question. The rolling landscape was replaced by buildings, and the sidewalks were slightly busy with people out on the lunch rush. "You alright?"

He noted that both the hand covering hers and his right were both tense, gripping whatever they were holding onto. Quickly releasing his grip, he looked out the passenger window. "Yeah… Just thinking. Care for a coffee?"

"Read my mind." They pulled off the main road, and into a small parking lot. Releasing his recently fastened safety belt, Alex opened the car door and stepped out, stretching his legs, and cursing under his breath as he did so. She had done the same, minus the cursing, and they both headed for the coffee house, which looked to be filled with people. Once inside, they both got a small coffee, black, and sat down in a corner, away from all the locals, cops, and tourists. While waiting for the steaming caffeinated liquid, Alex brought up the lyrics he had just remembered.

"Odd thing really. I was hitching a ride from a trucker, and before I got to Shepherd's Glen, this song came on the radio. Granted I had just had a crappy nightmare, so I really didn't pay attention until now." Repeating the lyrics, he saw that same look of recognition on her face that he had. "Yeah. That's what I thought too. Didn't know it at the time, but now I get it."

"That is odd." She paused, as the server placed two steaming mugs between them. When the guy sauntered off, she continued. "This just now crossed your mind?"

"Yeah. I don't know why. Must have run out of things to think about." Taking a long sip of his coffee, Alex felt the scalding liquid running down his entire body. Though it wasn't, he found the feeling odd. It was like there was nothing to him. Continuing with his drink, he saw people looking at them. It was almost as though they could just sense abnormality. He rolled his eyes. "Some people need to keep their prying eyes in their own business. They might find that they have overlooked something in their own lives."

"Too true. Look at my situation, I was too busy worrying over the town's history and all that I was completely ignorant of a failing marriage."

He laughed dryly at this. It had been no secret that Elle's father was a man of particularity. He had to have things just as he liked them, or there would be hell. They would get into a fight about her coming home late after a particular grueling day, and she would simply shut him out, going into her study and locking the door. That had happened many a time.

"Something tells me he was different when you married him."

"Yeah. He had a much less volatile personality. We could actually hold conversations for longer than five minutes. I have to say that your father was different, as well. He was a decent man, Alex."

"Yeah right. No amount of hardship can excuse what he did. You're completely different."

"How so?"

"Dad did all that shit for himself. He made me feel like a stranger in my own house. You on the other hand, did what you did because you had to. Family contract and all that shit. You gave a damn about your kids. How'd you do it?"

"Do what, love my kids?"

"Yeah. I know you are nothing like my father, but wasn't it hard, knowing you had to give one of them up?"

"It wasn't easy. Knowing that one had to go, and seeing how hard your father was on you, I realized that I couldn't just play favorites. I hadn't planned it either. That was what really started the rift between me and my husband. He wanted Elle to go, and I couldn't decide. I loved both my children, and by now, you've seen what that's done."

"Yeah, insomnia."

"Right. Now, I live with that decision."

"See, that is what separates you from him. You regret killing Nora. Dad regrets not killing me faster. That way, Josh would still be alive."

Hearing the scraping of chairs against tile beside them, Alex saw the three eavesdroppers from earlier getting up. He turned his head, seeing them watching. "Man, you can't go anywhere without these people watching and wanting information."

"I know. Let's get out of here."

Nodding sharply, they got up, careful to simply leave without people noticing. The man at the counter nodded to them as they left, seeing the tip on the table under their now empty mugs. Leaving for the car, they both stared as fog was gathering. Not thinking about the misting rain, a look of horror passed between them. Alex spoke first.

"Shit… Not here too."

"Oh God…" Looking up, Margaret let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. "Rain."

"Huh?" Feeling the rain on his face as he looked up, the knot that had instantly formed in his chest started to dissipate. They ducked back into the car, laughing slightly at their panic attack. The action didn't reach any further than their mouths. Both sets of eyes were as cold as the rainy sky outside. Heading back out onto the main road, they headed out of town. It was quiet again. This was becoming a common theme between them. As buildings went by and thinned out, Alex noted that Margaret's eyes were twitching, looking around for something. Finally, when they reached the city limits, she pulled over.

"What's goin' on?"

"I can't do this…" She bolted from the car, Alex moving after her.

"What the-"

"Go back!"

He stared at her, as she moved to the railing separating them from a steep slope down to the fast-paced river below. Tailing her, he stopped dead, as she leaned against the guard rail, looking down at the rocky bank below. "What are you doing?" Receiving no answer, he slowly approached, careful to stop, just out of her reach, so that he wouldn't cause her to do anything extreme. Not having been in one of these situations, Alex was stumped. He didn't know what to do, and it scared the piss out of him. "What brought this on?" His voice had calmed considerably, seeing as he had learned early on that shouting didn't solve anything.

"Guilt." It was a flat answer but a response nonetheless. Alex waited, his fists curled tightly at his sides. This was something he was completely unprepared for. She had seemed calm before.

"Guilt is what brought this on Alex, years of it!"

"Okay, well talk about it. Do you think hurling yourself off a bank is going to do you any good? It sure as hell won't put your mind at ease. Elle said that the insomnia wasn't the only change. I should have listened."

"It may not put my mind at ease, but it will put it to sleep… As for Elle, I'm sure she called me a heartless bitch, right after that. Am I right?"

"No. At the time, she still thought Nora was alive! How could you think your own daughter would think that?"

"Wouldn't be the first time."

"_You work late, Nora's missing, and I'm the only one that gives a damn anymore! Dad said you were heartless? Wow, I didn't know just how right he was…_ Elle's words echoed around in her head, causing her to grip the rusted rail even tighter. Alex started to step forward, but stopped himself. Getting too close would screw everything up. He saw the anger and pent up frustration mirrored in what he could see of her eyes. The thoughts were racing in his head, trying to find one where she and Elle had a huge disagreement. None came to mind, but Alex was sure there was something he was missing.

"Talk. Tell me what's going through your mind. Vaulting off the side won't solve anything!"

"I will always live with the decision I made that night, Alex. I will live with condemning Nora to death!" She finally looked fully at him, and Alex almost cowered under her glare. Shaking himself, he looked her directly in the eye. "You weren't responsible, Alex. All this, it was already set in motion the day your father chose the wrong one. I am at fault for what happened to my children. Had I been straight with Elle, she would still be-"

"No she wouldn't! Regardless of what you had told her, she would have gotten herself killed." Alex hated thinking this, but it was true. Elle would have gone on and tried to uncover this whole mess, whether she knew the truth about her sister or not, and they both knew it, deep down. "You know that. Don't think that all this shit is your fault! Blaming yourself doesn't do any good, right? It won't bring either of them back!"

"Don't you think I know that?" Her voice was quiet now, the anger and bitterness gone. Alex slowly moved forward, seeing her hand fall from the guard rail. Placing his hands on her shoulders, Alex tried to be as blunt as possible, without crossing the line.

"I feel everything you are right now. You hold yourself accountable for all this, and so do I. You feel guilt beyond reason. So do I. All this shit happened, and there's nobody to blame, because all those who are responsible are dead. No others survived, and we hold ourselves accountable. It is something we will apparently have to live with."

It was a strange thought that came into her head right then. She saw more than a twenty-two year old in this man. There was forced wisdom, and he was much more in tune with the world's tragedies, having faced one of the worst just twenty four hours ago. He was more than he seemed, and it took her 'til now to see it. "You're right…" The tone of her voice suggested defeat. "There really isn't anyone to blame…"

"No." Letting his arms fully encircle her, there was a moment where the world was standing still, holding its breath. The feeling went through Alex, causing his breath to hitch.

_All this time, I thought she had detached herself from what was happening. I should have realized… She was bottling all this p. I guess I am guilty of that too. I was practically projecting my anger from when I was with my mother onto Elle. Then again, she was pissed too. Still, I should have seen the breaking point. I should have known that the grief over her daughters was eating her alive. Why didn't I? Was I blinded by my own?_

Feeling her arms around him, Alex took a moment to relax into it. They had been rather tense, angered, stressed, and all around distant, except for when he had broken down earlier. They didn't have much time to think on this situation, however. From behind them, a car flew off the road, the far right of the front bumper hitting Alex, and sending them both over the embankment. Seeing the rocky shore below, Alex kicked off the side of the slope, sending them past the rocks and over the water. Hitting the rushing surface, a state of shock took over. The cold hit him first, followed by the muddy bottom of the river. For a second, panic took over. It was like when he was thrown into the lake. He didn't know how to swim. Shaking the fear out of his head, Alex kicked his feet, causing himself to slowly move through the water. Looking up, he used his feet as a spring, launching himself upward.

Making his way to the surface, he didn't see Margaret anywhere above or beside him. They had both hit the water, and a cold chill added to his frigid body. He had hit the water after she had. Feeling his lungs protesting, he managed to get to the surface, gasping for breath. Flailing his arms and legs about, he found himself staying afloat. Looking around, he still didn't see her. Looking up, he saw the black blazer that had hit him above, he inwardly cursed. _Why did it have to be us? Why! Couldn't the idiot have swerved and just dented the guard rail? Damn, can you believe our luck! _Having no choice, he went back under, finding that if he pushed his arms out and back that he would propel himself forward, as well as kicking his feet. He met the bottom, seeing a still figure. Gripping the slender frame, he quickly sprang back up toward the surface, having to kick his feet only. Breaching the surface, he pulled himself to the shore. Alex was thankful that the river itself was pretty narrow, as if it was man-made. Feeling the dry rocks beneath him, Alex used them to pull them both away from the river's pull. He looked up, seeing flashing lights above, and could only assume that the police had been tailing this lunatic that had thrown them over the edge. A searchlight went out over the embankment, shining down on the shore and the river. Landing on them, Alex turned his head away. This let the officers above know that at least one of them was alive. Dimming the light a bit, they started descending from their viewpoint, and Alex looked to the still woman beside him. Seeing her eyes open and moving slightly, he relaxed a bit, but he didn't have much time. The cops swarmed around them, getting emergency aid to them. As they lifted her onto a gurney, Alex felt himself sinking into unconsciousness, having exerted himself, swimming. The caffeine hadn't lasted too long, and it wasn't the best source of energy since he hadn't eaten. The last thing he saw was her eyes darting to him.

* * *

Hearing voices, Alex slowly opened his eyes. Instantly closing them, he gritted his teeth together. This went unnoticed by the doctors who were apparently standing over him.

"He's been out for a week. Surely that shouldn't have done anything. He fell off the bank, swam to shore, and saved her life. How can that knock out someone for a week?"

"Apparently, according to the tox screen, he still had anti-psychotics in his system. Don't know why, though. No history of any psychotic breaks. That could be why he's knocked out. Hang on, his eyes are moving."

Alex grimaced, trying to open his eyes again. Two people were standing over him. One was a doctor, balding with grey hair. The image of the doctor in his nightmare that looked like Adam flashed back into his head. The second was a nurse, and she was a reminder that he was in the real world. Her short blonde hair was tucked back behind her ears, allowing for her to lean over him without it falling in her face. They both straightened up as his eyes opened, the doctor nodding to the nurse. She wrote something down, and then the doctor left the room. Testing his voice, Alex looked to the nurse.

"Wh-where am I?" He attempted to sit up, expecting her to push him back down. He was surprised when she didn't. "Where's-"

"She's just to your right. Hasn't said much in the few minutes she's been awake. Asked for you, though. You remember what happened?"

"Yeah, every bit. Why?" He sat up, looking over at the still form in the bed next to his. "What's wrong?"

"She doesn't remember anything. When you two fell into the river, she hit her head, and hard. I was hoping you could shed some light on it for her."

"No." He thought about all that had happened, remembering all that was lost, the people they couldn't save, and the home they left behind. "You mean she doesn't remember anything? What has she said?"

"Not much. She's said something about her husband, but then said he didn't want to have kids."

"Oh god…" The thought of her losing that much memory was scary. He then considered what that could do. "Ignorance is bliss, or in her case, loss of memory."

The nurse shook her head, leaving him to his thoughts. Alex felt like there was nothing wrong with him. The weakness he had felt earlier… or however long they had been here, were gone. Slowly moving his legs over the side of the bed, Alex gripped the office chair for support, while moving it slowly to her bed. The thought of no memory still rang clear in his ears. How had she remembered him, if she had no memory of her children?_ She looked at me… _The image of her eyes locking on him when he was lying on the rocky shore crossed his mind. Placing his hand below her cold one, he just sat there, thinking.

It must have been hours, because the light coming from the window to his right was fading to an inky darkness. Nightfall was apparent, and Alex was still sitting there. The nurse had poked her head in the door, checking on him, and looking at her heart rate. Seeing that all was well, she left, letting him just sit there. Looking at the clock on the wall, Alex saw that it was 2:06 in the morning, when he felt the hand atop his move. Looking up, he saw her eyes flit open, and instantly, her body relaxed. _This will work itself out…_ Feeling her fingers intertwine with his, Alex looked up, seeing her contented look. _We'll start over… Though having no memory may raise questions, in her case it is the key to happiness._

"For her continued happiness, I am responsible."

* * *

**A/N: **This is it. This is the last chapter, and I labored over it. I am not sure how it turned out, so let me know. I enjoyed writing this, though it is the first one in this crack pairing. That's become a habit of mine, I guess. Anyway, I may have more stories in this pairing, so if you like, check them out. Thanks again for reading!


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